


Skin Deep

by sciencekills



Category: Naruto
Genre: Action, Adventure, Angst, Drama, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Multi, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-20
Updated: 2016-06-20
Packaged: 2018-07-16 03:58:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 50
Words: 259,268
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7251076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sciencekills/pseuds/sciencekills
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One simple mistake lands Uchiha Itachi in a world of unpleasantries. What is this strange place? Who is this spirited blonde-haired girl with lavender eyes? And why must fate have such an ironic sense of humor? ItachixOC</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Re-posted from FanFiction.net. If you have nothing nice to say, please keep it to yourself. Enjoy!

Blood poured from Uchiha Itachi’s side as he ran across the forest-filled mountainside, hair whipping in the wind. He struggled to control his ragged breathing, Hoshigake Kisame running beside him and Amegakure assassins—those still loyal to the deceased Hanzo’s cause—trailing close behind them.

The Akatsuki continued fleeing, trying to find a more open place to fight. The forest was a perfect place for an ambush, especially considering they were unfamiliar with this particular one. But, after much dodging of weaponry and careful hiding, Itachi and Kisame momentarily lost their pursuers.

"There has to be an easier way to do this," Kisame growled. He and Itachi pressed themselves against respective trees. "Give me five minutes and I'll have them all shredded!"

Itachi didn't reply immediately, knowing his voice would shake if he did. His ribcage burned in protest. "We will need to work with what we have," he stated, collecting himself. "This forest cannot go on forever. We will continue on for a bit longer."

The shark eyed the panting Uchiha. Sweat dripped from Itachi’s brow, betraying his hidden strain. Kisame's gaze rested on a growing splotch on the side of his partner's uniform. Even through the black material, he could see the bloodstain.

"They injured you?"

"I'm fine."

"Itachi—"

"I said, I'm—fine…" Itachi trailed off as Kisame yanked the Uchiha's hand from his side, revealing the tear in his uniform and the bloody palm of his hand.

"They've caught up." Kisame glanced to see the shinobi team closing in from all directions, even above. "We should get a move on. There will be no hope of finishing the mission if we do not leave quickly," Itachi said. Kisame grudgingly obeyed.

Minutes later, the Akatsuki stumbled on a clearing. It wasn't an open field, but a rocky cliff side with more woodland below. Nonetheless, the upper area lacked trees, so it was close enough. Now, their enemies couldn’t hide themselves amid the foliage, and the Akatsuki could fight properly.

"Don't do anything reckless," Itachi murmured.

The taller man scoffed as he removed Samehada from its harness. "Speak for yourself."

The shinobi team had them cornered now, and the battle commenced. Half of the group attacked Kisame and the rest targeted Itachi.

Itachi captured his first opponent in the Mangekyou sharingan. Two others assaulted him with katanas, one already stained with his blood.

The Uchiha's limbs quivered as he parried the blades with a kunai. He caught a glimpse of a fourth ninja performing hand signs for a fire jutsu. With crimson eyes, Itachi copied him.

The twin fireballs met and devoured each other, canceling the jutsu. The unknown Ame shinobi began more seals.

Itachi copied two more jutsu, both of them water, before his vision darkened. Five hazy figures ran toward him, weapons raised. In this state, he was painfully aware he couldn't block all of them.

He closed his eyes, waiting for them to come just a bit closer. A tear of blood slid from his left eye.

_Amaterasu!_

A wall of black flames sprang from the ground, consuming three of the five ninja who hadn't jumped back in time. Screams ripped from his victims.

Itachi had no time to celebrate his victory as another wave of wooziness swept over him. He staggered back, one hand clutching his bleeding eye while the other remained glued to his side.

To make matters worse, the darkness engulfing his vision prevented him from noticing his foot placement on the edge of the cliff. His rear foot staggered back onto thin air and, with nothing to steady himself on, the Uchiha lost his balance. Hungry onyx tongues separated him from both help and harm. The next thing Itachi knew, he was falling.

Kisame's silver orbs widened as his half-conscious partner plummeted over the edge.

"ITACHI!"

-

"ITACHI!" A different voice screamed the Uchiha's name in his head, overpowering Kisame's. The face of a small raven-haired boy filled Itachi's mind. The child's innocent black eyes pleaded.

"Nii-san!" he screamed again.

_Sasuke…_

Itachi barely retained consciousness. Death sweetly whispered temptations to give up and let it happen, but he fought it. He couldn't die here.

With renewed determination, Itachi's hands fought the air current to form the tiger seal. But, before he could continue, pain shot through his lower back as a large tree branch with sharp, knife-like twigs interrupted his fall.

A spew of blood left the Uchiha's mouth, his eyes and mouth shooting open. He fell the rest of the way unconscious, resolution gone with his awareness.

He met the ground with a sickening  _thud_. The shinobi lay still as a rock, almost managing to blend in as one. A crimson pool slowly engulfed his motionless form.

He was alive but barely.

A pair of sandaled feet padded through the forest as strands of pale blonde hair whipped in the breeze. Seventeen-year-old Hyuuga Akira grumbled to herself as she walked, a small half-filled plant container clutched in her left hand.

"Kaede-sensei… why did you have to send  _me_ to find more forest herbs?" The blonde stooped over to examine and then uproot another plant. "Why couldn't it have been someone else?" she finished with a sigh, rising to resume her search.

One of the proud students of Karasuma Kaede, the most accomplished healer in the Whirlpool Village and older sister of their village's political head, Karasuma Hayato, Akira only resented her training when it sent to the forest to restock the herb supply, an admittedly necessary, but boring task. She'd rather be in the clinic healing injuries, which she scarcely did with her current training program.

"Okay…" Whipping out a list from her pocket, Akira did a mental checklist. "I need two more Akebia, one more Suikazura, and at least one—"

The container flew from Akira's fingers as she tripped and instinctively brought up her hands to absorb the impact. She hit the ground with an echoing  _crash_.

"Itai," Akira winced, gingerly pushing herself to her knees.  _Dammit, what made me trip?_ Her glaring eyes descended to a large, oddly-shaped rock at her feet. Akira blinked several times, wondering if she were seeing things.

Not a rock… a person? By the looks of it, he hadn't been lying there for long. Maybe a few hours. The Hyuuga girl inched closer and raised a tentative hand to check his vitals. She froze midway. Something red stained her hand.

_Blood._

Akira quickly examined her knees and other hand to find she'd fallen into a puddle of the stuff.

The source of her predicament, at first glance, seemed dead already, but, upon closer inspection, a faint rise and fall to his stomach refuted her assumption. He looked much older than her with those lines beneath his eyes, but the rest of him was young. Long raven locks framed a pale, ashen face and a scratched out leaf headband adorned his forehead. Twin trails of blood ran from his mouth, and, oddly enough, another from his left eye.

He wore a high-collared black cloak with red clouds, which concealed most of his lower body, save for the gaping wound where a great deal of blood had already pooled and dried.

 _What happened?_ Akira wondered, her gaze ascending to a trail of oddly broken tree branches.

"He must have fallen," she said aloud. It would explain all the scratches, although someone with a knife or sword had probably mugged him at the top of the cliff and shoved him off for good measure.

Assessment completed, Akira acted. She hadn't spent hours training and pouring over textbooks just to let some stranger die. However, she would have to take him home to treat him. The village hospital was too far away, and her personal medical stash contained everything she needed. So, as gently as possible, Akira slumped the Uchiha onto her back and struggled to her feet.

_He's heavier than I expected._

With newfound urgency, Akira started running. On the bright side, all his bones were intact thanks to the branches he'd run into on his way, although he would still bleed to death if she didn't hurry.

Her original mission of herb gathering lay forgotten along with the abandoned plant container.

-

Itachi's consciousness ebbed back to him in addition to the pain unconsciousness had so graciously smothered for him. As usual, his eyelids felt heavy and throbbed painfully, but not-so-usually, every joint in his body ached like he’d been asleep for a month.

Itachi's train of thought came to a screeching stop when he felt something cool and smooth being pressed against his lips. He couldn't bring himself to open his eyes yet, but, moments later, a refreshing liquid slipped down his parched throat. Come to think of it, he did feel rather thirsty.

_Wait—_

The Uchiha's eyelids flew open, revealing the brilliant red irises of his sharingan.

He sprang into a sitting position, momentarily hindered by a shooting pain in his abdomen. He ignored it, and, in the process, violently seized his attacker's wrist. But, before he could cough out a demand, he—literally—began coughing up whatever had just been poured down his throat, releasing her wrist in the process.

Itachi did a double-take.

Wait,  _her_?

"Great, just what I need!" she hissed, clutching her left wrist, which glared red with a finger-shaped bruise.

Itachi raised a dark eyebrow. He watched her opposite hand light up with a bright green glow, and, still frowning, she pressed her illuminated digits onto the mark.

 _A healing ninja?_  Itachi's vision finally focused enough for him to assess her features. His coal black eyes met the most brilliant pair of lavender orbs he'd seen since Konoha. Long strands of pastel blonde hair framed a delicate face currently contorted in an angry glare. He couldn't see too clearly, but from what he could guess, she looked to be about his age.

Eyes darting from side to side, Itachi examined his surroundings. He lay in a bed with light blue sheets and fluffy pillows, much like a girl would use. It even smelled feminine. The physical room was a standard Japanese bedroom with paper walls and a hardwood floor. Aside from the bed, there was a nightstand, dresser, desk, and closet. Paintings and kanji decorated the walls in addition to a dartboard protruding with kunai and shuriken.

Upon examining himself, however, new questions arose in Itachi's mind: what was he doing here, and why was he half naked with bandages around his lower torso?

A red stain seeped through the white linen, jogging his memory. He and Kisame had been running, one of the pursuing Ame nins had stabbed him, then he'd been stupid enough to ignore his limits and fell off that cliff as a result.

Itachi turned his attention back to the fuming blonde. Now how did she fit into all this?

"Where am I?" Itachi asked in the calmest tone he could muster.

"You're in the Whirlpool Village, and, more specifically,  _my_  house," she informed, still glaring.

 _Whirlpool Village?_ He knew about the Whirlpool country, but that place had been destroyed years ago.

"And what the hell do you think doing?!" she snapped, motioning to a small puddle of water on the floor intermingled with shards of what used to be a drinking glass.

_What the…?_

"I didn't save your life so that you could attack me and break my stuff!"

Much to his surprise, the girl did not turn to the shattered pieces. She instead reached for an overturned picture previously out of his line of vision, revealing a family photo of a little blonde girl with her parents. Despite her straight face, a glint of pain reflected in her eyes, but only for a second. Itachi knew that pain—the pain of someone who'd lost everything.

 _Her parents must be dead._  An unfortunately common occurrence among shinobi.

Wordlessly, she replaced the frame in its proper place on her nightstand next to another picture Itachi made a mental note to examine later.

"As I was saying," she turned back to him with renewed annoyance. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

"You can never be too careful," he replied coolly.

"Did you think I was trying to poison you or something?"

Itachi didn't reply this time.

_Well, you can never be too careful._

"You were semi-conscious, so I was giving you water to keep you hydrated," she stated matter-of-factly. "I unfortunately don't have an IV lying around. Besides, do you honestly think I'd waste three days of work just for that?"

Itachi sat there for a second, dumbstruck. Did this girl not know who he was? Judging by his current clothing, she'd already seen his Akatsuki cloak, and, not only that, his face was in practically every bingo book out there. How could she not know his identity?

The blonde cleared her throat, bringing him back to reality. She seemed calmer, but then again, she had also forgotten the shards of glass on the floor. Still, he should count his blessings. At least, for the time being, he didn't have to worry about any bounty hunters jeopardizing his life.

"Well, I should probably start by introducing myself." Her lips twisted into a friendly smile, which, although genuine, unnerved him considering her previous mood. "I'm Hyuuga Akira."

"Uchiha Itachi." Judging by her personality, she would have said or done something by now had she recognized him, so why not use his real name? It would make for a more interesting tale to tell Kisame.

Speaking of the shark, Kisame was either on his way back to Akatsuki or searching for Itachi's nonexistent corpse. Knowing him, it was probably the latter. His stubborn partner didn't tend to believe anything unless he confirmed it himself.

"So I've been unconscious for three days?" Itachi finally said. Unsurprisingly, awkwardness lingered.

"Yeah… on and off." The awkwardness reinforced in Akira's tone. Itachi secretly hoped he hadn't talked in his sleep. "I managed to heal most of you injuries, but the wound on your stomach is rejecting my chakra. Do you know if you were injured with a poisoned weapon?"

Itachi thought back to the Ame nins he had fought. They were professionals. Of course they would poison their weapons.

"Most likely," Itachi replied. He couldn't come off too sure. She might ask more questions.

Her shoulders hunched in disappointment. "Just as I though."

"How am I still alive if I was poisoned?"

"Well, I know enough to make an antidote that counters the basic effects, but every time I try to heal you, the poison causes your body to reject my healing chakra."

"So basically I have to just sit and wait for this to heal naturally?"

"Not exactly. Your body is rejecting both my chakra as well as your body's own healing. It hasn't shown any improvement these past few days. In the least, I managed to help close it, but otherwise, you're stuck."

"And I could easily open it and bleed to death if I'm not careful," Itachi finished.

She smiled wryly. "Good to know you catch on quickly. If my theories are correct, you're now a glorified hemophiliac."

Itachi sighed, running a hand through his loose raven hair. This was getting complicated.

"Um, Itachi, was it?"

"Hn?" He mentally flinched at her use of his first name.

"I think I could make a better antidote for you, but it's going to take some time. I did the best I could on short notice, but I've never seen a poison like this before. I know it'd be inconvenient, but—"

"I have to stay here for a few days while you research the poison?"

"Depending on how complex it is, maybe even a few  _weeks_. Sorry to say, but I'm no miracle worker."

Itachi didn't need to say anything for Akira to know this option displeased him. He knew healers in Konoha who could do better work in half that time!

"Hey, it's either that or bleed to death. Take your pick."

An image of Sasuke flashed through Itachi's head. As pleasant as bleeding to death sounded, he would have to grin and bear it. It would allow for some much-needed time to rest his sharingan.

"I accept your conditions," he said stiffly.

"Good then." Her face broke out into a grin. "Are you hungry?"

"Somewhat." Actually…

Side-stepping the shattered mess she had yet to clean up, Akira made her way to the door.

"Wait here. I'll be right back," she called, turning her head. The Uchiha's eyes, now crimson again, followed her until she walked out of sight.

So far, she seemed like a kind, bubbly person prone to mood swings. Undoutedly, his least favorite type of kunoichi to be around. Falling back onto the pillows, Itachi closed his eyes, mentally picturing Sasuke's face again.

What had he just gotten himself into?

-

"Damn…"

Kisame gazed up at the trail of broken tree branches leading back down to where he stood. Beside him lay an obvious imprint where Itachi's body had been. The proof was in his pocket. He'd found Itachi's Akatsuki ring as well.

But where had he gone?

After examining the evidence, the shark deduced two possibilities. One, being that Itachi had died here and some kind soul had been courteous enough to give him a proper burial,  _or_ —considering Kakuzu—they'd been smart enough to make use of the criminal's death and turn him in for a bounty.

But someone may have found Itachi in time. He could potentially be alive, but battered from his fall. The first choice was such an unfitting death for such a powerful man, but, then again, his second thought sounded absurd. As if the chance of Itachi being saved wasn’t slim enough, but the mere image of his partner at the mercy of another human being brought an ironic smile to Kisame’s lips.

Itachi had to be dead, but where was his body? Kisame couldn't, in his right mind, return to Akatsuki without proof of Itachi's death. Besides, even if he did, Pein would send him back to find some evidence, knowing their leader.

In spite of himself, Kisame chuckled.

Even in death, that Uchiha still caused trouble for him.

-

A mildly pleased look reflected in Itachi's eyes as he chewed a mouthful of fried rice. That kunoichi had been taking her time, and he just found out why. She'd gone completely overboard with making him breakfast. She hadn't just cooked a meal, she'd prepared a mini-feast! But at least the taste was pleasant. Certainly better than anything he'd eaten at Akatsuki, save for the occasional stick of dango. She'd even made dessert.

"I may have gone a bit overboard." Akira laughed, nervously tapping her index fingers together. "I live alone, so I don't get many chances to cook for others."

"Hn." Itachi only half-listened to her ramblings. Why did women always have to be so chatty? Thankfully, Konan was an exception to that rule, but then again he would not be spending the next few days with the stoic paper kunoichi.

"Hey, are you even listening?"

He was stuck with this oddly hair-colored Hyuuga.

"Hn."

Akira twitched at his redundant answer. This was going to be a long recovery.

Two days passed, and, throughout that time, Itachi and Akira's personalities clashed nearly every second while Itachi made his best effort to heal as much as he could with the traces of poison plaguing his system.

On the first day, the Uchiha found the strength to get out of bed and take a shower, which Akira discovered afterfinishing her poison research for the day. She'd been initially alarmed upon finding her room empty and her bathroom mirror fogged from hot water use, but soon found Itachi on her living room couch, one of her books on medical herbs in hand.

Itachi made a personal commitment to contribute to her research as much as possible to avoid being dead weight while Akira did all the work and expedite creating the antidote. It was the second day now, but they were getting nowhere.

"Have you tried adding this to the mix?" Itachi suggested, pointing to one of the illustrations.

"Yes. Nothing happened," Akira said, defeatedly examining the seal in front of her. Every drop of every antidote she tried so far had done nothing to extinguish the sample of poison she'd placed on the seal.

"Hn."

The two sat in silence.

"Ita—" Akira began.

_Knock knock!_

The Hyuuga girl blinked in confusion at the interruption.

_Knock knock!_

"You should probably get the door."

"Y-yeah, right…" Akira found herself stuttering. "Stay here. I'll just be a minute."

Her cheeks burned red as she briskly walked toward the noise.  _I'm probably just frustrated because we can't make a decent antidote,_  Akira reasoned, brushing off the emotion.

A smile graced the Hyuuga girl's lips when she recognized the chakra presences behind her door. She slid the wooden blockade open to reveal her teammates.

"Kaname, Eri!" Akira's smile grew as she greeted the kunoichi. "What brings you here?"

Kaname, the more extroverted of the two, stepped forward, her emerald eyes glinting beneath rich copper bangs. "We came to visit you! We haven't seen you all weekend!"

Akira nervously smiled at her friends. Her mind flickered back to Itachi awaiting her return in the study, but, after meeting Eri's soft chocolate gaze, she forgot all thoughts concerning the Uchiha. As long as he stayed there like she told him to, she shouldn't have to worry about her friends finding him.

She shuddered to think of what would happen if Kaname and Eri discovered her having a male roommate for the next few days. She planned to tell them, but just not now.

"Sorry, guys. I've been busy lately," Akira admitted, convincing herself that taking care of an egotistical Uchiha was actually very hard work.  _Technically_  she wasn't lying through her teeth. "Why don't you come in and I'll make some tea. We can talk or study or whatever, I guess."

Eri smiled back as she brushed a strand of wavy ebony hair behind her ear.

The three of them now sat comfortably around Akira's dining room table, cups in hand.

"That's the stuff!" Kaname sighed in contentment after taking a refreshing gulp. "So, Akira, what have you been up to?"

"Nothing really," Akira said as she poured the steaming liquid into Eri's empty cup before filling her own. "Mostly research."

 _Please, Itachi, just stay in the damn room!_  Akira pleaded as she "calmly" set the teapot down on the table. "Well, enough about me. How did you guys spend your day off?"

Their sensei, a middle-aged woman named of Kaede, had conveniently cancelled healing class for them that Friday, the same day Itachi regained consciousness. It had been unexpected, but fortunate for Akira.

"I slept in!" Kaname declared.

"How about you, Eri?" Akira turned to her more soft-spoken friend, whose fingers delicately wrapped around the ceramic cup for warmth.

"My parents had a bit of a dilemma with someone trying to break into their house," she said before taking a sip of her tea. "Thankfully, nothing was taken, but I still dropped by to see them."

"Leave it to Eri to always help someone in need!" Kaname grinned. "Although it sucks that you couldn't enjoy your vacation fully."

Eri shook her head. "It was all resolved, so I don't regret it. They are my parents, after all."

"Still, that was nice of you," Akira pointed out. "But at least you had the weekend. What'd you do then?"

"Housecleaning," Eri replied. "After my usual training, of course. I studied a bit before bed, too."

"Sounds eventful enough." Kaname shrugged. "Rather than training, I rested yesterday. I should get back into my usual routine today, but Kaede keeps us so busy with homework!"

The three of them continued catching up, and, due to the casualness of it all, Akira began relaxing. But, just as Kaname brought on the topic of "How come there aren't any good men in this village?" Akira suddenly became painfully aware of their seating arrangements.

For one, Eri had her back to the doorway leading to the hallway, and Kaname, who still blabbered on, sat to her left. Akira faced the doorway, her jaw on the floor. A certain Uchiha had come out to see if she was done talking yet.

It was everything Akira could do to keep from screaming. Just when she'd managed to forget her worries for a few short minutes, this idiot came waltzing back in! Now she not only had to worry about her friends seeing him, but she also had to figure out a way to get him back into her study and make him stay there without her friends knowing.

"Akira, are you all right?" Eri interrupted the Hyuuga girl's thoughts.

Her face had been clearly displaying her feelings of intense rage. "Oh, I'm fine. Sorry, I was just thinking about something unpleasant," she covered, waving her hand for emphasis. "What was it you were saying again, Kaname?"

While Kaname continued and held Eri's attention, Akira took advantage of the moment to glare death at Itachi. Jerking her head to the side, she made an expressive gesture with her eyebrows and clearly mouthed, "Get out!"

He didn't budge.

"Eh?" Kaname noticed Akira's antics from the corner of her eye. Like any normal person, she looked over to see what the problem was.

Then all hell broke loose.

Kaname yelped and proceeded to fling the first object she could grab, being her cup, at the Uchiha. He smoothly sidestepped, and the cup shattered against the wall, further infuriating the Hyuuga girl.

"Not again!" Akira groaned. Itachi had already broken a drinking glass. At this rate, she would need a new set of dishware by the time this was over. "Kaname, stop it!" Akira jumped to her feet and ran into front of Itachi, her arms extended.

"Akira, who is this?" Eri inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Um…" Akira trailed off, her speech failing her. How exactly was she supposed to explain this?

"A word!" Akira seized Itachi's wrist and dragged him into the hallway.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" she hissed once they were in privacy.

"Your minute turned into an entire hour," Itachi stated. "I was wondering when you were planning to return."

"As if it wasn't obvious! Haven't you ever heard of social graces? And would you mind not scaring my friends?"

"It was not 'obvious,' as you say," he replied. "And considering the amount of time they've been here, I'd assumed you mentioned me."

"Mentioned?" Akira seethed. "'Mentioned,' you say? ' _Mention_ ' what exactly? That I found some ungrateful drag queen bleeding to death in the woods, and, out of the kindness of my heart, I decided to save his life, but turns out he can't leave just yet? Yeah, like they'd believe that!"

Itachi's mouth twitched into a rare expression.  _"Ungrateful drag queen?"_  Even Hidan didn't have the nerve to call him such names. He maintained his composure through a dark glare.

"I do not appreciate such name calling—"

"Sorry to interrupt, but what the hell is going on?"

The pair turned to see Kaname and Eri poking their heads through the doorway.

Akira palmed her forehead. What had she done to deserve this?

"Itachi, listen carefully. Go into my room and stay there while I explain this complete misunderstanding to my friends." She scowled for emphasis. "Is. That. Clear?"

Itachi held back a sigh. He held no desire to further drag this out in the company of others. "Don't take too long." His parting words echoed in Akira's mind as she turned back to Kaname and Eri.

"Um… could we go back into the other room?" Akira requested, pinching her index fingers together.

It required a considerable amount of self-control for Itachi to calm down as he barricaded himself in the Hyuuga girl's room. He couldn't remember the last time he felt so flustered. He could see where Akira had gotten her temper from, or at least who one of her influences was. That brown-haired friend of hers also had quite the throwing arm.

The Uchiha plopped onto the bed as a sudden wave of dizziness overtook him. Now his head was spinning in addition to his throbbing wounds.

To distract himself, Itachi fixated his attention on Akira's nightstand. Two familiar picture frames caught his eye. He recognized the first as the photograph he'd accidentally knocked over upon waking three days ago—the one of Akira's likely deceased family. Akira looked roughly ten-years-old in this picture. Her hairstyle was the same waist-length braid as present-time, but she had a certain radiance about her lost in the girl he knew today.

Her father's eyes matched hers. He was undoubtedly the proud donor of her Hyuuga genes. He looked like a Hyuuga, with his facial structure and long dark brown hair, but, unlike most Hyuugas Itachi knew, he had a softer, more fatherly expression on his face.

Her mother looked more like her, although her eyes sparkled blue instead of lavender. Their hair colors matched, but her mother's hair length fell shorter than Akira's, and she donned a ponytail instead of a braid.

From one glance, Itachi could already tell why Akira missed her parents so much. With a family like that, who wouldn't? Even with his poor eyesight, he could see their love for each other.

His gaze lingered on the picture. The longer he stared at their faces, the more he felt like he'd seen them before. Had he brushed by them on a mission, perhaps? Unlikely, though, considering he'd never heard of this tiny water village before.

His musings cut short when he turned his attention to the second photograph. This one also had Akira, but the two girls he'd seen sitting at the table replaced her parents.

The three of them looked about twelve, whereas they were more around seventeen now. Akira's copper-haired friend stood to her left, clad in a green dress and pale brown apron. Her angular cut bangs leaned over the left side of her forehead, the pointed strands covering one eyebrow while the remainder of her hair pooled down to the small of her back.

The more shy-looking girl, Eri, stood to Akira's right. A soft smile graced her lips while innocent, deep brown eyes stared back at him. Her hair looked soft and wavy, but not overly curly. It reminded him of Kurenai's hair. Her outfit consisted of a long-sleeved red shirt and black pants with a standard kunai holster and bandages fastened to her right leg. Simple, but practical.

The three of them looked more shinobi-like in this picture than they did today, which Itachi blamed on their lack of headbands and weaponry. Each girl donned a cloth embroidered metal plate with an engraving he had never seen before: three swirls connected in a way that made them resemble whirlpools.

-

"So, let me get this straight," Kaname began, rubbing her temples to soothe an impending headache from information-overload, "you found that guy unconscious and bleeding to death in the middle of the woods?"

"Yep."

"And you saved his life…"

"Yep."

"And these past few days, you've been busily searching for a cure from a poison that's preventing this Itachi from making a full recovery?"

"Yes!" Akira finished, exasperated.

Both of her friends gave her dubious looks.

"You don't believe me, do you?"

"When did you plan on mentioning this?" Eri inquired.

"I didn't want to tell you guys about this until he woke up, well, in case he, you know,  _died_ …"

"But he's awake now," Kaname remarked, frowning slightly.

Akira sighed. This conversation was far from over.

"He woke up on Friday, and since we didn't have any official training scheduled, I figured I'd tell you this Monday."

Another set of dubious looks.

"Okay, so I was  _considering_ it," Akira admitted. "But really, I wasn't trying to keep secrets. I just didn't want you to worry about me."

A comforting hand touched Akira's shoulder. "We believe you, Akira," Eri assured. "We just don't want you to get hurt."

"Not just that, I want one, too!" Kaname added.

Akira froze. " _What_?"

"Oh come on, Akira, don't tell me you haven't thought about it. Good men like that don't just fall from the sky!"

"Off of cliffs, maybe," Akira muttered before returning to her normal tone of voice. "Kaname, I haven't got the slightest interest in that moody Uchiha."

"But he's so handsome!" Kaname protested. "Not only that, he's got a sexy voice!"

Akira's cheeks bloomed with color. Admittedly, Itachi wasn't a bad-looking man, but she would never quite label anything about him as "sexy."

"Kaname does have a point, you know," Eri said.

"Eri!" Akira gawked at her friend. Kaname she would understand, but she hadn't thought Eri capable of even agreeing with such things!

"Well, one way or another, you'll have to properly introduce us some time," Kaname said, winking suggestively.

Akira rolled her eyes. "No."

"Oh, come on. You mentioned he might be here for a while."

"Itachi is here for healing purposes and healing purposes  _alone_."

"That could change," Kaname pointed out. Eri giggled like a schoolgirl.

"You know what, see you guys tomorrow," Akira said flatly. "I have an impending problem to deal with that begins with cleaning up a broken cup and will most likely result in someone's death!"

"Tell us all about it tomorrow!" Kaname called as she and Eri slipped on their shoes.

"Good luck," Eri added.

The door shut and her friends left to head back to their own houses.

"I'm certainly going to need it," Akira mumbled as she walked away to find a broom to clean up the shards of ceramic. She finished this task in a matter of minutes. Now to attend to the second half of her problem.

"Itachi?" Akira whispered, tentatively opening the door to her room. She noted a black blob in the shape of a man collapsed on her bed. "Itachi?" she called again.

That was odd… she didn't think he'd fall asleep so quickly.

She inched forward, making sure to keep both hands up in case he suddenly woke up and tried to bruise her wrist again. Thankfully, nothing happened.

Akira placed a hand on the Uchiha's pale forehead. He seemed warmer than usual. She glanced away for a second to check the time. Her heart nearly stopped when she looked back to find two narrowed black beads meeting her gaze.

"What are you doing?"

"Eh?" She still had her hand on his forehead.

"Checking your temperature," she replied casually, trying to ignore the raging blush on her cheeks. Dammit, she'd honestly thought he'd been asleep!

"Your friends are gone, I take it?"

"Yep, and next time they'd like a proper introduction. Looks like you got lucky."

"Hn."

Akira tried to think of something else to say, but Itachi beat her to it.

"That Kaname friend of yours is quite a character."

"I'd appreciate if no one else broke any more of my dishes, though."

"Shouldn't you know it's rude to talk about people behind their back?"

Akira froze. "Come again?"

A smirk played on Itachi's lips.

 _Oh Kami, he didn't._ He'd overheard Kaname's "sexy" comment, hadn't he?

"D-don't hold it against them. They're teenage girls! It's normal, right?" Akira reasoned, trying but failing to hide her worsening blush.

"As are you."

"Shut up. You've got a slight fever, and you need to rest before I knock you out. Besides, I have more research to do, not to mention homework for tomorrow's class!"

"Whatever you say." His eyes still seemed to be smirking although his lips weren't.

Akira let out another sigh, mentally wishing she'd thought to close the door upon dragging him in here.

"I'll wake you in an hour for dinner. Until then, Itachi, please try to get some rest. Both of us should stay out of trouble that way."

"Hn."

-

"Hn." Itachi's eyes were closed, but he knew Akira twitched. For whatever reason, his short answer frustrated her. She exited the room and closed the door softly behind her, isolating Itachi.

To be quite honest, Itachi felt quite flattered at her friends' comments. Although this wasn't the first time he'd been called such things, he knew not to let it go to his head. They reminded him of a bunch of giddy, naïve schoolgirls, somewhat akin to his former fan club in Konoha.

As for Akira, that girl possessed such little control over her emotions that Itachi wondered how she had managed to make it this far as a kunoichi, at least in the word he grew up in. Maybe it was just a façade, like the one he always put up. He hoped, in the least, there proved to be more to these kunoichi than met the eye.

As Itachi's consciousness ebbed away, a single thought still weighed on his mind. Ever since he laid eyes on that family photo, he couldn't shake the familiar notion he felt around Akira. Surely he would remember meeting someone with this much attitude.

Even in his feverish state, his mind and deduction skills were sharp. So why did he have this strange, unexplainable feeling about the girl?


	2. Chapter 2

“Kaname,” Eri began, “is it just me or has Akira seemed more tired than usual lately?”

The two girls continued down the path to their neighboring houses as they headed home from a healing lessons on a warm Friday afternoon. Akira hadn’t walked home with them that day, giving the excuse that she had some errands to run in town.

“I agree,” Kaname said. “Do think it’s because of _him_?”

The dark-haired kunoichi nodded. “That would be my best guess. He and Akira don’t seem to get along very well.”

“I don’t see how,” Kaname muttered. “Sexiest guy I’ve ever met.”

“I’m sure Akira wouldn’t be happy to hear you say that.” Eri frowned. “Looks aren’t everything. Besides, someone might hear us.”

Kaname’s tone became sarcastic. “Right. And who, other than us, would be headed down this way that only leads to our houses? Please, Eri.”

“I just think we should be careful.”

Unaware of the figure trailing behind them, the girls dropped the subject of Uchiha Itachi and moved onto something less suspicious.

 _What’s this about Akira and a sexy guy?_ the figure thought with sparked interest.

-

A door creak open as a familiar chakra presence flickered to life on Itachi’s radar.

“I-ta-chi!”

The Uchiha flinched as the syllables of his name resonated through the tiny six room house. Akira was back from her healing lesson. Reluctantly, he closed the book he’d been reading, carefully pushed himself off the couch of Akira’s study and walked out to greet her.

He arrived in time to see Akira kicking off her shoes before she burst into the dining room. His vision shifted to a mass of plastic bags she lugged in with her.

“Hey, I did a little shopping for you!” A grin plastered her face. Whatever could she have bought? His blood ran cold when she brought out a gray T-shirt from one of the bags that looked much too big for her petite frame.

“Here, tell me what fits and what doesn’t.” Still grinning, she thrust the bag and T-shirt into his hands. Itachi stood motionless for a few seconds.

“It was unnecessary to go shopping for me,” he stated.

“You’re welcome,” she retorted. “I figured you may appreciate something other than the two sets of clothes you currently have.”

Itachi tried not to think about what other surprises resided in those bags.

Unfortunately, as much as Itachi hated to admit it, she was right. They were nowhere near to discovering the antidote, and he had been here a full week now. Needless to say, Akira was tired of doing so much laundry, and he was in dire need of some new clothing.

At lunchtime, Itachi appeared dressed in a mesh shirt, similar to the one he wore back at Akatsuki, and a pair of dark brown pants. His trademark necklace glinted on his neck, and, as usual, his long dark hair was gathered back in a ponytail. She had been a surpringly good judge of the wardrobe he liked, although it unnerved him how everything fit perfectly.

“You look better,” she commented, scanning him from head to toe. “Did I forget anything?”

“No. Thank you.”

The two of them casually made their way out to the table Akira prepared. They sat down, but Itachi raised an eyebrow when he noticed she’d brought a textbook with her. She flipped through the pages between bites, jotting down notes as if she were studying for a test.

“What are you doing?”

His words burst her concentration bubble. “What?”

“What are you doing?” he repeated. “Can’t you study later?”

“Stop complaining, this isn’t school work.” She frowned. “I think I may have come up with another possible antidote for you.”

“When will you be able to test it out?”

“Heh heh, about that…” She laughed nervously. “I kind of left the seal with Kaede-sensei.”

“You _what_?”

“I brought it to Kaede-sensei a little while ago to see if I could get some help.”

Minus the genjutsu, Itachi shot her one of his infamous looks.

“Don’t give me that. I didn’t tell her about you. I just mentioned I discovered a new poison from a nearby village that doesn’t have an antidote yet.”

“And this ‘Kaede-sensei’ of yours willingly agreed to help you on such vague information?”

Akira frowned again. “I was more descriptive than that, but that’s the gist of it. Besides, we can still test it.”

“And how do you propose we do this?”

Akira sighed, closing her books before pushing them aside. “Let’s worry about this after lunch, okay?”

“Hn.”

Sure enough, once their afternoon meal finished, Akira set to work on concocting the new antidote. Itachi, of course, returned to her study to read, only to be called back two hours later.

“This may taste a bit unpleasant,” Akira warned as she handed him a glass of what looked like regurgitated green goo. Itachi tried not to shiver when the putrid smell wafted into his nostrils.

“And try not to spill any,” she added.

Itachi resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he brought the cup to his lips. Sure enough, the antidote tasted as bad as it looked. He somehow glulped the substance without gagging, but he owed it to prior experience of taking nasty medicine.

Lips pursed, Itachi wiped his mouth and handed her back the cup. His wound still throbbed painfully, but he doubted the effects were instantaneous.

“Itachi,” Akira began.

“Hn?”

“You’re a ninja, right?”

“And?”

“Just making sure.” She paused. “I think we should be able to test the effectiveness if you train for a bit, and then see how you feel. There’s a place nearby where we can train.”

“And if I reopen my wounds?”

“Then, if it did work, I’ll be able to heal you, and you can be on your way!” She grinned, although, for some reason, her smile looked fake.

“Hn. When do we start?”

She looked at him disapprovingly. “At least give the antidote some time to work. Go sit down and read or something. I need to get ready.”

 _And for what I wonder?_ Itachi thought as he made his way back to Akira’s study.

He really hoped this would work.

“Itachi!”

True to her word, half an hour later, Akira came back to find him, although this time, she was dressed in what Itachi assumed was her ninja outfit.

Her outfit was identical to the one he’d seen in the picture of the Akira and her team. A shinobi headband gleamed on her forehead, giving her a more ninja-esque look while a medium-sleeved light blue shirt clung to her upper torso. To represent her clan, she had yellow patches embroidered with the Hyuuga symbol on each arm.

Underneath that, a tight black shirt covered the remaining skin of her arms and the base of her neck. A dark blue sash, probably lined with hidden scrolls and weaponry, hugged her waist while light blue pants matching the color her top overlay another pair of tight black pants covering the rest of her ankles.

Against his better judgment, Itachi decided not to comment on her wardrobe change. “Finally back I see.”

“Shut up,” she snapped, sounding embarrassed. “Let’s go.”

Once outside, she led him to a clearing about a quarter mile from her house. He noticed a few beaten-looking trees where shinobi had trained before surrounding them.

“So…” Akira trailed off, giving him an awkward look. “Where should we start?”

Itachi shrugged. “You’re the medic.”

She twitched, a red vein popping in her forehead. “What do you feel up to?”

The Uchiha paused, returning her gaze. “A light taijutsu workout should do the trick.”

“Do you mind fighting me?”

Itachi shook his head.

“Alright then. Don’t overdo it, okay? If this doesn’t work and you reopen your wounds, I have to use a different way to stop the bleeding.”

Itachi tried not to think too hard about her last statement. This was unbelievably reckless of him. He should just wait until tomorrow when she could get back the seal. That way, they would not require such crude methods.

The Hyuuga girl settled into a fighting stance. Itachi noted the veins showing through beside her eyes, indicating her activated kekki genkai.

Then again, he could use some training.

-

Before Akira could blink, Itachi’s chakra vanished from sight.

 _He’s fast!_ Thanks to her byakugan, Akira saw him approaching from behind.

She blocked a kick to her abdomen, but the sheer force still drove her backwards.

 _Strong, too!_ Her eyes widened in shock. Just how many surprises was this guy hiding?

“Hm.” Itachi’s expression seemed thoughtful, almost unconcerned.

“Something wrong?” Akira inquired as she ran at him, her palms glowing with chakra. Time to see just how good his reflexes were.

She moved quickly, but he was faster. He dodged her first few pokes and casually jumped when she dropped to sweep his leg.

“Nothing.” His answer made her eyes go widen as his fist descended toward her face. Through some miracle, she blocked it, but the momentum threw her to the ground.

“My strength’s still not back to normal.” Akira heard him mutter. She didn’t bother hiding her astonishment when she jumped back to her feet, trying to ignore the ache in her back from the fall.

“Normal strength?!” she squeaked. “Just how strong are you?”

He appeared back in front of her in the blink of an eye. She temporarily froze when she noticed his irises were red.

 _That’s weird._ She spotted an opening around his stomach area and went for it, momentarily forgetting his injuries as she prepared to use her jyuuken. Thankfully, Itachi only suffered the first few pokes before bursting into a cloud of smoke.

 _Kage bunshin?!_ She hadn’t seen him perform the hand signs.

Jumping into the air again, Akira narrowly avoided an assault from behind, only to receive a head on attack from another Itachi clone. Or the real thing—her byakugan couldn’t tell the difference.

Itachi grabbed both her wrists before she had a chance to block. They tumbled to the ground, Akira on the bottom. The failed attacker from behind her burst into a cloud of smoke, making the Itachi sitting on top of her the real thing.

His expression became thoughtful again. If her arms hadn’t been pinned, she’d be trying to punch the stupid look off his face. What was he doing spacing off at a time like this? She tried in vain to free her captured limbs, but Itachi’s grip was far too strong.

“H-how’s your strength?” she stuttered, now becoming aware of their positions. Their figures pressed tightly together, a position Akira would not mind so much if she could move. Their faces were a good six inches apart, but she could feel his breath tickle her skin.

“Better than I thought,” he answered and finally released his hold on her wrists. Akira was surprised not to see bruises, although he had left imprints that would take a while to fade. Her face remained red from the encounter, and, now sitting up, she felt a migraine coming on, since she hadn’t had the time to fall correctly.

“Okay.” The Hyuuga girl shakily rose to her feet, trying to maintain her footing while the throbbing pain in her head threatened to knock her off balance. Not only that, she tasted blood in her saliva. “Does it feel like the antidote worked?”

He shrugged, but as he did so, Akira’s attention drew to a stain showing through the gray under his new mesh shirt. The stain was red.

“Itachi.” His eyes followed her gaze to the area. “You’re bleeding.”

The Uchiha gritted his teeth as the palm of his left hand moved to cover the wound. He didn’t curse like she would, but he definitely looked frustrated.

Closing the distance between them, Akira rested a hand on the firm surface of his abdomen and activated her healing chakra. An unpleasant shock ran through her fingertips and all the way up her arm, deactivating her healing energy. Familiar, but disappointing.

The antidote hadn’t worked.

Sighing, Akira reached for the pouch on her right side and brought out a small vial that thankfully hadn’t broken during her fall.

“Here, drink this. It should help your blood clot.” It was a sample of the first antidote she’d used. It wouldn’t enable the wound to accept her healing chakra, but, in the least, it would help stop the bleeding.

He drank it without a moment’s hesitation, but the frustrated air still lingered between them. Sighing for a second time, Akira returned the empty vial to her pouch.

“Let’s go back home,” she suggested. “I’ll do more research.”

After a brief, “Hn,” the Uchiha complied.

-

 _That was amazing._ The same stalker that had trailed Kaname and Eri that morning thought. After hearing about Akira’s new roommate, she’d rushed over to the Hyuuga’s place to find her offering clothes— _men’s_ clothes—to someone she hadn’t been able to get a good look at from her position outside the window. But now she could see him in plain daylight, and, needless to say, Kaname’s description had been spot on.

This guy was incredibly sexy and, from the looks of it, also quite the ninja.

 _It may be worth it to watch them for just a bit longer._ Already beginning to fantasize about what it would be like to meet him, the stalker noted the lack of conversation between Itachi and Akira, and, after making sure her chakra remained cloaked, she fled the scene.

-

Itachi’s crimson eyes darted behind them as the he and Akira left the training grounds. Akira didn’t seem to notice, but someone was following them.

Whoever it was, his chakra presence wasn’t anywhere near what Itachi would consider a threat, hence the reason he kept the discovery to himself. Likely, it was someone else from Akira’s village. Not Kaname or Eri, but, either way, the presence was gone now. Their stalker had probably found trailing Akira and him quite boring, since neither of them felt particularly talkative.

At the moment, Itachi tried not to feel disappointed. They had been so close to creating an antidote, but it hadn’t worked. He had been so close to finally being able to leave this wretched place to go find Kisame.

But, then again, was this place really that wretched?

Itachi had to admit that no pressure and training whenever he pleased was quite a sweet deal. The food was great, and although the company was not what he would prefer, everything else made up for it. There were no missions, no killing, and no reminders of his past. But, Itachi took that moment to remind himself of his purpose on this earth.

He wasn’t here to have a good time. He was here to recover from his wounds and then go back to Akatsuki, where he could continue working toward his goal of saving Sasuke. His brother was all that mattered, and his brother was the only reason Itachi hadn’t taken his own life yet.

Itachi spared a glance at the blonde kunoichi walking beside him.

As blasphemous as it sounded, he wasn’t so sure anymore. He was beginning to question his motives. He was actually beginning to enjoy his life again.

“Itachi?” Akira’s voice broke the Uchiha out of his thoughts. She sounded hesitant as she tapped her index fingers together, a habit Itachi noticed she only did when she felt nervous. “I’m sorry the antidote didn’t work.”

That was it? That was all she was upset about? Itachi turned his full attention to the Hyuuga girl. He envied her carefree life.

“Don’t worry about it.” A phrase he rarely used. “Next time we can test it using the seal.” Uncharacteristically optimistic of him. If Kisame were here, he’d be laughing.

“Thank you.”

And for what, Itachi had no idea.

-

The rest of the day dragged, but, in the late evening, Akira hit a painful realization: it was Friday, and she didn’t have healing training again until Monday.

She’d suggested the idea of walking to Kaede’s and simply retrieving the seal off hours, but Itachi pointed out it would draw too much attention. Why would she want something that wasn’t even directly related to her original training plan? It would arouse suspicion, and both of them eventually agreed it would be best to wait until Monday, with Itachi more on the begrudging side.

It was Saturday now, and Akira busily juggled homework between poison studying while Itachi researched what he could to make her second assignment easier.

 _I’m so tired,_ Akira thought, clamping her jaw shut to hold back a yawn as she rested her head on the open pages of a rather thick textbook. She struggled enough with her assignments from Kaede, let alone her work for Itachi. She needed a stress reliever. Better yet, she needed to train.

“Ne, Itachi?” Akira hoped her tone didn’t betray the full extent of her fatigue.

“Hn?”

“Do you feel like training?”

Hell, she was already in her ninja outfit, so why not? All she needed to do was tie on her headband. Like all the other times she’d requested something of him, Itachi calmly closed his book and set it aside. “I wouldn’t be opposed to it.”

_Thank you._

They reached the training grounds in record time, and, thankfully, Itachi hadn’t questioned why she’d suddenly decided to pick up the pace. Without further hesitation, she walked a fair distance away from the Uchiha and settled into a fighting stance.

“Ready?”

“Hn.” He stepped back slightly but didn’t bring his hands up.

 _Byakugan!_ Akira quickly did the hand sign to activate her bloodline limit before springing into action like a hungry tigress. Like last time, Itachi evaded every attack she threw at him as if it were the easiest thing in the world. It was beginning to annoy her.

“Come at me seriously!” she snapped between pokes.

He looked at her with dead black eyes. He seemed to say, “You don’t want me to do that.”

At the moment, she didn’t care. With a battle cry, she attacked him head on and actually managed to land a full jyuuken this time.

“Sixteen, thirty-two, sixty-four points!” Akira yelled, throwing the Uchiha back a few yards. A streak of sweat slid from his brow as an expression of concealed pain contorted his face.

 _What the hell did I just do?_ Messing with someone’s chakra points, let alone on an injured person, during a general spar was never a good idea. Dammit, she’d completely lost control.

He ran at her, and she stepped back to brace herself. She noticed Itachi’s eyes change from their usual black to a flaming red. A kekki genkai?

Sidestepping his attack, Akira rotated her stance to aim a roundhouse kick at the Uchiha’s head. As expected, he stepped forward and blocked her with both hands, barely giving her enough time to retract her leg and follow up with a spin rear kick.

Once again, much to her frustration, he evaded without so much as blinking.

 _How does he do that?_ Akira wondered, blocking another kick and a subsequent punch combination. _I need to finish this soon if I want to win._

By now, she’d completely forgotten about his injuries. She waited a bit longer before she saw an opening near his center, the perfect place to continue her jyuuken.

Ensuring her hands were remained up to protect her face, Akira went for it. Much to her dismay, he shuffled back just enough to be out of range before something much more unexpected happened—Itachi started… coughing?!

The Hyuuga girl froze her next attack midway as he collapsed to his knees, one hand clasped over his mouth and the other gripping his chest, the apparent source of his pain.

“Itachi!” Deactivating her byakugan, Akira dashed over to the writhing Uchiha. She collapsed next to him, tempted to panic.

 _What do I do?!_ She hadn’t hit him. Without a doubt, he’d dodged her last attack. _Could it be the poison?_ She’d never seen symptoms like this before.

Unsure of what else to do, Akira channeled chakra into her palms and pressed them against the broad expansion of Itachi’s chest. A familiar shock ran up both her arms as his body rejected her healing chakra. She‘d been able to heal his other injuries before, just not that katana wound. Was this an effect of the poison spreading?

Another thirty seconds passed until his fit finally ceased, and, by that point, Akira could only stare in shock. As a healer, she’d never felt so useless, and that spike of emotion was only driven deeper when she noticed splotches of red staining the hand Itachi used to cover his mouth.

“A-are you alright?” Akira stuttered. Itachi didn’t reply.

-

“A-are you alright?”

Her words didn’t surprise the Uchiha as he lay there on the ground, still clutching his chest, while his body fought to gain control of his ragged breathing. The two of them waited in silence, only broken by Itachi’s occasional pants until the nightmare finally ended.

He’d become careless and over-used his sharingan again. Coughing up blood was no surprise for Itachi. This had occurred numerous times beforehand, although, most of the time, it happened when he pushed his body too far.

The first time occurred two years after Itachi’s new eye abilities began. At age sixteen, he’d been facing a particularly difficult mission for Akatsuki. He’d emerged victorious and alive, but this unheard of illness made itself known from that point on.

Over time, his condition only worsened. After a year, every time he used Susann’o, he would start coughing up blood. Finally, he’d covertly seen a medic about it, but his particular condition was unheard of. There was no treatment, and Itachi couldn’t stay in one place long enough to find one, without drawing unnecessary attention.

To this day, no other Akatsuki, including Kisame, had knowledge of this. Itachi made an effort to hide his weaknesses from other people, just like he did with his emotions. There was a strong chance Madara knew, but, then again, Itachi speculated his ailment was exclusive to the Uchiha clan. He would be surprised if his former sensei hadn’t picked up on anything.

Overusing his most powerful eye techniquies for too long or one after the other usually triggered the painful coughing. In the beginning, these episodes only happened occasionally, but, almost five years later, his condition had degraded to where merely overusing his regular sharingan triggered an attack.

And there was still no treatment.

So here he lay, coughing up blood with this Hyuuga girl here to witness every moment of his weakness. Itachi briefly considered killing her and running, despite not having a cure for the poison in his system, but the fact she’d saved his life stopped him.

“Itachi! Come on, say something!” Her voice broke him out of his thoughts.

“Itachi!”

She sounded worried—she actually sounded worried about him. Honestly, it unnerved him. Would she still be calling his name with such emotion if she knew he had just considered ending her life?

“Are you alright?” she asked again.

He finally allowed himself a nod. “Yes.” Itachi tried not to flinch when her hand touched his shoulder.

“What the hell was that?” she murmured.

Deciding it would be best to lie, Itachi shrugged. “Probably a side effect of the poison.”

She averted his gaze. “Yeah. Looks like it.”

Itachi kept his expression blank. Gullible, wasn’t she?

Pushing himself to his feet, Itachi ignored the shooting pain in his stomach. He couldn’t entirely blame Akira for being gullible. She didn’t know his head was on bounty hunter’s most wanted list. The words “Uchiha” and “sharingan” meant nothing to her.

“Itachi, what are you doing?!” she exclaimed, jumping up after him.

“Standing. We should be heading back now, shouldn’t we?”

“You start coughing up blood and now you’re casually suggesting that we walk home? What is wrong with you?!”

Itachi paused. She did have a point. He wasn’t doing the best job of maintaining a cover that kept her from asking questions.

“And what else do you suggest we do?” he replied calmly. “As you can see, I’m fine now.”

“Yes, but—”

“Hn?”

She looked away again. “I suppose you’re right.”

-

 _What was that?!_ Their stalker from the previous day was back and still trailing Itachi and Akira. She’d been tempted to run out and try to help when this mysterious man had suddenly started coughing up blood, but since Akira seemed to have things under control, she decided against it.

From the looks of it, the entire situation was nothing more than a simple accident. She hadn’t managed to get close enough to hear what they were saying, but she inferred enough to know what was going on.

 _I hope he’s okay,_ she thought. _I may just have to pay Akira and that handsome guy a visit, just in case._ Smirking to herself, the stalker was more than ready to use this as an excuse to stop by and hopefully meet him. _This should be an eventful day._

_-_

“I‘m hungry,” Akira murmured and, as if on cue, her stomach rumbled. Now back at her table studying, she found herself nodding off a few times. She’d already commanded Itachi to rest after he cleaned up from training. Surprisingly, he hadn’t protested, and she resumed her work without further hindrance. But she was still tired, and now she was hungry, too.

“I should probably start on lunch. Itachi might be hungry, too,” she said to herself, closing her textbook and happily tossing it aside. “Now what should I make?”

Twenty minutes later, lunch was ready and the dining room table set. Akira smiled contentedly as she walked down the hallway to inform Itachi. Oddly enough, she was getting used to living with another person.

“Itachi.” She rapped her knuckles on the door to her room.

No answer. Akira tried again.

“Itachi!”

Still nothing. Sighing, she was about to slide open the door to go wake him when something startled her.

“Yes?”

She spun around to see Itachi standing right behind her. “Didn’t I tell you to rest?” She frowned. How did he always manage to sneak up on her like that?

“As I said, I’m fine now.”

Eying him closely, Akira attempted to find something contradicting his statement, but found nothing. “Well, I was getting hungry, so I made lunch. Would you like some or not?”

“Hn.”

She folded her arms across her chest. “Meaning?”

“Sure.”

The two of them made their way to the dining room where the aroma of freshly cooked food greeted them. Akira’s stomach growled again.

“Sorry,” she apologized, a light blush adorning her cheeks. Thankfully, Itachi didn’t seem to care.

Chopsticks in hand, Akira was seconds away from saying, “Itadikimasu!” and digging in when a soft knocking stopped her.

_Knock knock!_

Akira reluctantly set down her chopsticks.

_Knock knock!_

_Never a dull moment, huh?_ she thought, standing up to see who it was. _It’s probably Kaname and Eri. I wonder what they want._

As she neared the entrance, Akira found only one presence behind the front door. And that chakra almost felt like…

“Hello, Akira.”

Her eyes narrowed as her visitor’s face came into view. It wasn’t Kaname, Eri or any friend of hers.

There stood her self-proclaimed rival, Harumi Misaki.


	3. Chapter 3

_Finally, let's hope he's floating around here somewhere,_  Misaki thought, glancing past Akira in hopes the mysterious dark-haired man was nearby. Much to her dismay, she saw nothing. She even fabricated a reason for her visit, but if that dark-haired hottie wasn't around, all would be for nothing.

_Come on!_  Misaki impatiently tapped her foot as she turned her attention back to Akira. Under normal circumstances, Misaki wouldn't be caught dead on Akira's property, but she'd bear with it if she could get a better look at this guy.

_Where is he?_

_-_

"Misaki?" Akira blinked several times to ensure she wasn't seeing things.  _What's she doing here?_  Akira wondered. Misaki never just  _visited_ her—there had to be a catch.

Harumi Misaki was an especially thin girl with pixie cut brown hair and icy blue eyes. She wore a whirlpool hitiate on her right thigh, but the pink trim on her clothes, heavy makeup and tiny blossom in her hair made her look like an extremely girly one.

"What brings you here?" Akira didn't bother faking a smile. For the first time in three years, Harumi Misaki stood at her doorway. Last time she had been here, the two of them were partnered for a rather disastrous mission.

"I haven't seen you in a while, so I figured I'd drop by."

"Uh-huh. What do you want from me?"

A mock expression of hurt flickered across her rival's features. "Why ever would you assume such a thing?"

Harumi Misaki, age eighteen, had been her rival for as long as she could remember. Akira suspected it had to do with Kaede-sensei rejecting Misaki's request to train as her pupil upon leaving the ninja academy, but then again she had also agreed to train Kaname and Eri. Additionally, since then, Misaki had become an accomplished sensor and scout for the village under someone else's instruction.

"Doesn't take much thought," Akira said flatly. "What do you want?" Gripping the doorway with both hands, Akira made sure to keep her stance firm as she stared down her unexpected visitor, wanting to be prepared if Misaki suddenly decided to push her aside and barge in. But, nothing of the sort happened.

"I was just wondering if you felt like training. I mean, it's been  _ages_  since we've done anything like that—"

"I've already done my training for the day. Besides, I have homework."

"Oh, really? Are you sure? Both of us could probably use the extra practice." Akira fought the urge to look back when she noticed Misaki craning her neck, as if she were trying to get a better look inside her house.

_Please don't let Itachi be standing behind me,_  Akira pleaded, her body temperature rising with the tension. As if it wasn't already bad enough her friends knew about him. She didn't need Misaki, who she didn't trust, adding onto that! She didn't sense his chakra presence. Then again, he had a way with sneaking up on people. For all she knew, he could be standing right behind her.

Akira let out a heartfelt sigh before replying, "I'm fine by myself. And are you feeling okay? Last I checked, you hating training."

Misaki's eyes narrowed. At least she got a rise out of her. Maybe she could find out her real motive for coming all the way down here, while she was at it.

"Alone?" the brunette echoed. "Last  _I_ checked you had a new training partner."

_What_? She didn't mean Itachi, did she? How could she know about him? Maybe she was just talking about Kaname and Eri. Akira hadn't trained with them in weeks.

"If you mean Kaname and Eri, that's a given. They're my my teammates," Akira replied, fighting to keep her tone calm.

_That's right, Akira, just act innocent. She'll have no reason to press further if you don't look guilty._  Akira could only hope she was over thinking the situation. Nonetheless, Misaki's eyes remained narrowed.

"Oh really? I'd certainly remember it if I had a training partner like that. You know: tall, long dark hair, black eyes...  _Male_ …" She enunciated the last part. "Sound familiar?"

"Doesn't ring a bell," Akira lied.

"Really?" Misaki raised an eyebrow, blue eyes glinting smugly. "Then who's that?"

Misaki pointed a finger toward the wall. Apprehensively, Akira turned to follow her gaze. Her fears were confirmed. Itachi was standing right behind them.

_Dammit!_

"So," Misaki smirked, "care to revise that statement?"

Speechless, the Hyuuga girl turned back to Itachi. Figures, he looked so calm. Hadn't she already gone through this with Kaname and Eri?

-

_So this is who has been following us,_  Itachi thought as he examined the girly-looking kunoichi.

When Akira had gone to answer the door, Itachi sensed a familiar chakra presence. He recognized it as the same person who had discreetly watched Akira and him train earlier. Naturally, he'd been curious who their stalker was, so he'd followed Akira. As suspected, it was another of Akira's associates.

_Her chakra is weaker than Akira's._  No surprise there, but Itachi never appreciated people who followed him. He was, after all, a very careful person.

"Itachi," Akira fumed, "what the hell do you think you're doing?"

But, if this encounter ended badly, it would not bode well for him later that evening.

-

"Itachi?" Misaki repeated the name to herself. "Your name is Itachi?"

An odd name, but she could look past that. Coming here had certainly been worth it. She hadn't gotten a view like this at the training grounds.

He had a lean figure and smooth ivory skin. His eyes were the deepest shade of black she'd ever seen, and his equally dark hair was fashioned into a ponytail that ran in silky strands down the length of his back.

Misaki momentarily frowned at the stress lines running beneath his eyes. She'd missed that from a distance, but although odd, it somehow fit. It didn't ruin his boyish good looks at all.

"What are you staring at?" his velvety baritone shattered the overlapping silence. Misaki couldn't help but blush. Not just his looks, but he had a sexy voice, too?

_How did Akira score with someone of his caliber?_ Misaki wondered, her speech failing her. His gaze was hypnotizing. She couldn't seem to look away.

"Another one of your friends?" Itachi guessed.

"You think so?" Akira's expression clearly begged to differ. "More of an acquaintance, really."

Misaki frowned. "Is that any way to talk about someone you've known for eight years, Akira?" she shot back.

"What brings you here?" Itachi asked, seeming completely oblivious to the tension.

"I just wanted to ask Akira if she would train with me. She refused." Misaki pouted innocently, making the Hyuuga girl roll her eyes in annoyance. "But I wouldn't be opposed to it if you'd like to train with me, _Itachi_."

Her flirtatious antics went unnoticed by the Uchiha, or maybe even ignored. "If you wanted to train with her so badly, why didn't you do so yesterday?"

"What?" Akira looked confused. Misaki froze.

"I didn't have time to come out here and ask," Misaki replied sweetly, smiling in an attempt to conceal her apprehension.

"You saw her yesterday."

"Itachi, what are you talking about?" Akira questioned, clearly lost.

"She's been trailing us for the past two days," Itachi explained, turning his attention back to the Hyuuga girl. "You didn't notice?"

Akira laughed nervously.

_How did he find out? I hid my chakra._  Misaki stood there, momentarily wide-eyed. This guy was unbelievable. In addition to good looks and a sexy voice, he had ridiculously good chakra sensing skills?

"You must be mistaking me for someone else. I was no where near the training grounds yesterday," she said smoothly.

"Every chakra presence is unique, and I recognize yours from the other day," Itachi countered. "Why were you following us?"

Color quickly lit up Misaki's cheeks. She couldn't deny it now. Embarrassed, she turned away from the duo staring at her.

"I wanted to see who your boyfriend was," she admitted, still blushing. "I overheard Kaname and Eri talking about it."

_Akira will pay for embarrassing me like this!_  Misaki thought angrily, examining the floorboards to avoid eye contact. She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt so humiliated.

A pregnant pause filled the air. Confused, Misaki glanced back up at the assumed "couple." Akira looked like she'd just tasted something bitter, and Itachi looked… well, quite unhappy.

"You think we're a  _couple_?" Akira sounded disgusted. "What the hell gave you that idea?"

"Well, you two are living together, aren't you?"

"Yes, but…" she trailed off. “Call it a minor setback."

_Setback?_  Misaki looked questioningly at the Hyuuga girl.

"I would  _never_  date him." Keeping her eyes on her rival, Akira jerked her head in Itachi's direction. "You've got it all wrong."

"Hn." The Uchiha grunted in agreement. Not quite as expressive, but it got the point across.

_Okay—guy living with Akira turns out to be single._ She blinked. Hard to believe, but she wasn't complaining. Stealing another glance at the man she'd come to see, Misaki's lips twisted into a devilish grin. Even so, she wasn't about to let this go.

"Itachi, I'll take care of this. Please go back into the dining room." The Uchiha disappeared before either kunoichi could bat an eyelash.

"He's good-looking," Misaki remarked, her icy blue eyes glaring into Akira's lavender ones. "Would you mind explaining why a guy who's not romantically affiliated with you lives here?"

"None of your business, Misaki. Just know we're not a couple." Akira gripped the door, wanting nothing more than to slam it in Misaki's face. The sensor leaned a hand against the doorway, ready to prevent that from happening.

"Be careful. Someone else might steal him from you."

"You want him?" Akira laughed dryly. "You can have him. He's a pain in the ass to babysit. Just trust me when I say he's not interested."

"We'll see about that," Misaki seethed. "Thank you for your time," she said through gritted teeth. "Now I really  _must_ be going."

"Bye!" The door was violently slammed shut. Misaki's face contorted into an expression of immense pain—she hadn't removed her fingers in time.

Clutching her throbbing left hand, the kunoichi growled to herself.  _This means war._

_-_

"Finally," Akira sighed in relief once Misaki's chakra presence disappeared. Exhausted and still hungry, Akira collapsed into a sitting position at the table where Itachi had already resumed eating. With energy anew, she seized her chopsticks.

"Itadikimasu!"

Akira knew she'd be hearing more from Misaki, but, at the moment, she wanted to enjoy her afternoon meal. Unfortunately, less than a minute later, something interrupted her again.

_Knock knock!_

_You're kidding me._  Akira prayed she was just hearing things. She heaped another scoop of rice into her bowl and, seconds from shoveling an especially large bite into her mouth, the same sound echoed through the area.

_Knock knock!_

No use denying it. There was another person at her door.

"Of all the…" she trailed off, stopping herself before she could fall into a cursing fit. Why did this always happen when she wanted to do something? "Who could this be?" Akira muttered, annoyed that not once, but twice, she'd been kept from eating lunch. Once again, there was only one presence and it didn't feel like Kaname or Eri.

_Last I checked I didn't have any more rivals._

The door slid open and two orange-colored orbs met her lavender ones.

"Hey, Akira!"

In front of her stood a teenage boy a few centimeters taller than her. Short locks of dark brown hair blew in the light breeze as tangerine eyes sparkled at her with a boyish glint. A whirlpool hitaite gleamed on his forehead, and his clothes consisted of a pair of knee-length brown shorts and a short sleeved yellow shirt with matching brown sleeve designs, giving him an outdoor look. He wasn't unattractive, but Akira did not look happy to see Uzumori Saito, the son of a weapons shop owner.

"Saito?" Akira tried to keep her tone from betraying her frustration. Any other time she wouldn't mind, but today was not her day.

"What are you doing here?"

"Just thought I'd drop by and visit you." He grinned, genuine and pure. Akira had to admit he was a nice break from Misaki, but, although she didn't mind him personally, there were a few things this guy did not understand, no matter how many times she said them.

Saito was also a rather persistent suitor of hers. Given, he didn't possess the same malicious hostility that Misaki did, but he could still be quite annoying. He was nice, but rather clueless at times.

"You okay, Akira?"

"Sorry," she apologized, her brain desperately trying to fabricate an excuse to make him leave. Come to think of it, she felt a tad woozy at the moment. Low blood sugar, perhaps?

"Anyway," he continued, "I was wondering—"

"You want me to train with you?" she cut off, patience gone.

"Yeah." He blinked a few times. "How'd you know?"

"Lucky guess." Just what she needed. How was she supposed to get out of this and still be polite?

"Well, um, would you?"

"I already trained today. I'm actually eating lunch right now."

"Really?" His eyes lit up. "Can I join you? I can get my own food or just sit with you, if you like."

"I… uh... just finished," she lied. "You know, you're supposed to wait at least forty-five minutes after you eat and all that."

"Yeah… I guess…" Saito trailed off, nervously scratching the back of his head. "Tomorrow then?"

"I've got training with Kaede-sensei."

"Oh… I guess I should come back at a better time!" Undiscouraged, he flashed her another smile. It made her feel slightly guilty for sending him away like this.

"Yeah. See ya."

The door shut and Akira once again found herself stumbling back to the dining room. But, on the way, her low blood sugar from earlier came back to bite her. One second she was walking, and the next she was about to fall face first into the floorboards.

A strong hand grabbed her arm in time to steady her. The dazed Hyuuga looked up to see Itachi's emotionless gaze.

"Itachi?" Her mind snapped back to attention. "What are you—?"

"You almost fainted," he stated simply, for once, being a gentleman and escorting her back to the dining room. "You should be more careful."

"Thanks," she muttered, turning slightly red. At least this time he'd done something useful while sneaking up on her. She breathed a sigh of relief at her next thought.

And at least this time Saito hadn't discovered him, too. Knowing that idiot, he would definitely jump to conclusions.

-

"Dammit!" Misaki swore, kicking over a nearby trashcan. Damn Akira, and damn however she'd managed to get Itachi to live with her! Misaki was now a fair distance away from the Hyuuga girl's house. After her encounter, she wandered into town and currently occupied an otherwise vacant alleyway.

A scowl contorted the kunoichi's features. She just didn't get it. How had  _Akira_  ended up with such a hot guy out of the blue? And before her no less! It didn't make any sense that they were living together, but not literally "together." Did Akira actually expect her to believe that?

"Misaki?" A familiar voice called her name, interrupting her tantrum. Uzumori Saito stood a few yards away.

"Saito? What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing." He took a few steps forward and immediately noticed the kicked-over trashcan. "What's got you so aggravated?"

"Akira," Misaki replied, still scowling.

"What'd she do?"

Her scowl turned into a look of complete and utter rage. "I want to know how she managed to get a guy living with her! Especially one that's really good at sensing chakra!"

"Whoa, whoa, wait. Akira's got a guy living with her?" Saito blinked in confusion. "Like a  _boyfriend_?!"

Misaki folded her arms across her chest. "She denies it, but I don't believe her."

"Akira has a boyfriend?" Saito ignored everything beyond her previous sentence. He looked devastated. "How?"

"It's just not fair!" she fumed, ignoring him. "He's way above her level in so many ways! Something just doesn't seem right!"

"What's he look like?" Saito inquired glumly.

Misaki's icy eyes immediately changed from burning anger to pining teenage girl. "Well, he's tall, muscular, and has the smoothest pale skin I've ever seen! I swear it could be porcelain!" Misaki rambled, but cleared her throat upon noticing Saito's expression. "He's got long dark hair tied back in a ponytail, and his eyes are black. Like two perfectly cut onyxes!"

"So basically he's your dream guy?" Saito summarized. "Tall, dark and handsome?"

"Pretty much." She let out another sigh. "He's handsome, but he doesn't talk much."

"Completely your type, then?" Misaki's eyes narrowed further at this remark. Saito shrugged. "I wish I knew what Akira was thinking… living with a guy, I mean."

"Hm," Misaki mused, the gears in her mind turning. "Hey, Saito, you like Akira, right?"

"Eh?!" Saito's cheeks burned red despite his dejected mood. "W-what gave you that idea?"

"Oh please, do you actually think it's ever been a secret? Even Kaede figured it out." Misaki frowned. "Just answer 'yes' or 'no.'"

"Y-yes…"

While Saito turned a few shades darker, Misaki fell into a contemplative silence.

"Well, one way or another, we're after the same thing," she finally said, making him raise an eyebrow interest. "Neither of us want Akira and Itachi living together."

"Do you have a plan?" Saito shot her a dubious look. He wanted to mope some more.

Misaki brushed a finger across her chin in a thinking pose.  _Would it actually work?_

-

"Oi, Itachi!" Akira called. "Could you come over here?"

Itachi paused his reading, but didn't immediately put away the book. Even in the study, he could hear her yelling from the kitchen. Knowing it was useless to yell back, Itachi marked his page and stood to answer her in person. "What do you need?" Itachi asked, his face blank. The Hyuuga girl turned around to face him.

"My friends will be here any minute!" Akira said, scrambling about in an attempt to finish cleaning up from breakfast.

"What do you need help with then?"

"Help me put these away!" She thrust a stack dishes into his arms before picking up another stack herself. Opening one of the cabinets above the sink, she began filing the dishware back into their proper places.

"Well, don't just stand there, help me!" she snapped. Reluctantly, Itachi obeyed.

_Kisame would be laughing at me if he could see this._  Itachi thought, mentally sighing. Who would have thought that he, the Uchiha prodigy and S ranked missing nin of Konohagakure, would be reduced to helping with women's work?

"There!" Akira grinned as she slammed the cabinet shut. "All clean."

Itachi half-smiled at her joy from something so foolishly simple. One thing he did like about Akira was how little it took to make her smile. The Uchiha stopped himself there when he heard someone knock. "Coming!" Akira called, disappearing from his sight to answer the door.

Why had he just used the work "like" and "Akira" in the same sentence?

-

"Hello, Akira."

Akira froze, eyes wide, as she recognized her visitor.

"Misaki?"

_What's she doing back here? I thought I told her off yesterday!_  Akira thought, frowning.  _As long as it doesn't involve Itachi, may as well see what she wants._ She forced her lips into a mildly-pleasant smile. "What do you want?"

"Just wondering, but are you and Itachi free this weekend?"

The Hyuuga girl blinked in confusion. "This weekend?"

_That's odd—why she would deliberately ask for Itachi AND me?_  Akira mused. "Yeah. What of it?"

"Saito and I were planning an outing to, you know, get to know each other better," Misaki explained. "You remember that lake a mile or two from here, right?"

"So you want to go swimming. Why invite me, can't you and Saito just go by yourselves?"

"Well…" the brunette trailed off just as Akira felt two more chakra presences enter the area. Misaki turned to see Kaname and Eri standing behind her. "Speak of the devil." She greeted the two with a smile that looked more devious than it did friendly.

"Misaki, what are you doing here?" Kaname inquired, repeating Akira's initial question.

"Just dropping by," she replied. "And what do you know! This saves me the trouble."

No one moved as they waited for her to continue.

"Are you two were free this weekend? Saito and I were wondering if you'd like to go swimming with Akira, Itachi, and us!"

"Oi, I never said yes!" Akira interjected.

"It may be a good idea, though." All eyes turned to Eri.

"You think so, Eri?" Kaname blinked in confusion. " _Really_?"

"Why?" Akira questioned.

"It's still warm out, and it could be a good time to get to know each other better," Eri explained, ignoring her teammates' stares. "Besides, none of us know Uchiha-san very well—"

"My thoughts exactly!" Misaki interrupted before she could completely finish. "So, what do you two say?"

"I'm in, too, I guess." Kaname still looked confused.

Akira let out a hefty sigh. "Fine, if you two are going, then I'll find a way to drag Itachi with me."

"Good then!" Misaki exclaimed, laughing shrilly. Her scheming grin had returned. "Besides, it would be awkward with only one guy along! Anyway, what do you say we meet at noon this Saturday at the lake? I'll even bring lunch! You three don't have any other plans then, do you?"

"No," Kaname said dejectedly.

"See you then!"

Just as quickly as she'd come, Misaki left.

All eyes turned back to Eri.

"Okay, what are you scheming?" Kaname demanded, her arms folded across her chest.

Akira frowned and nodded in agreement.

"Like I said, it'd be a great time to get to know each other better," she answered.

" _And_?"

"It's obvious Misaki wants something, right? What better way to find out what it is than to beat her at her own game?"

"Oh, I already know what she wants," Akira stated. "She's after Itachi. I knew that the second she laid eyes on him."

"You don't think he'd go after a girl like that, would you?" Kaname asked, clearly concerned.

"Please, he barely even talks! They don't match up in the slightest," Akira assured, waving her hand for emphasis.

_If he even likes girls,_  she mentally added.

"If you say so," Eri said hesitantly.

-

"What a day," Akira muttered, collapsing onto her living room couch with a resounding  _thump_. Their study session was  _finally_  done, and, between the three of them, they'd managed to get a ton of work done. Her friends were gone already, but she still had one more task to attend to: how was she supposed to tell Itachi about this Saturday?

"You do realize I already told you it's rude to talk about people behind their backs?"

"What the—" Akira yelped as she whipped around to see Itachi standing right behind the couch she was sitting on. His deep black gaze bore into hers, looking emotionless, as usual.

"Do you feel the need to scare me every time you walk into a room?!"

"A matter of opinion, I suppose." Akira didn't like the look on his face at all. "You should be more alert."

"Well, you should stop doing that!" she snapped, but immediately quieted. She sighed. "What do you want?"

His lips twisted wryly. "I heard my name mentioned in your conversation earlier."

"I take it you heard then?"

"Hn."

"It was Eri's idea."

"I know."

"You don't have to swim with us if you don't want to."

"I'd appreciate that."

_What's with him?_ Akira wondered. Itachi was never this passive with her. Was this his way of being difficult? The Hyuuga girl rolled her eyes. Well, she may as well ask.

"Are you angry that I included you without asking?" There, she'd said it!

"No."

"Don't lie to me."

"I'm not."

" _Really_?"

_Okay, maybe that last part was a bit cheesy,_  she thought, grimacing. Why was she even bothering to ask again?

"Hn.

She twitched.  _Would it kill him to say yes?!_

-

Sure enough, Saturday arrived sooner than expected, but, much to his displeasure, Itachi still didn't have an antidote for the poison. He hadn't put up much of a fight because he'd hoped to have a cure by then. Unfortunately, other work occupied much of Akira's time, and the poison was turning out to be more complicated than either of them expected.

Akira's eyebrows knitted together thoughtfully. "Itachi," he resisted the urge to twitch when she called his name, "which bathing suit do you think I should choose?"

At the moment, the two of them were in her room. She'd asked him for help with something, and, without thinking, he'd consented. He should have known to take off running the moment she begun rummaging through her dresser.

His gaze darted to the Hyuuga girl, who held a bathing suit in either hand. Her left hand gripped a black one piece with thin shoulder straps and a wide section of the back missing, and in her was right a modest pink tankini with a gap around the stomach and slightly thicker straps.

"Well?" she demanded.

"Neither." He may as well be honest. They simply weren't her color.

"Hm…" Akira thoughtfully returned to her dresser. She pulled out a different bathing suit. "How about this one?"

This option was a light blue bikini that reminded Itachi of a clear turquoise sky. It bore the perfect shade to bring out the lavender in her eyes, but, at the same time, was light enough to match her blonde hair. Itachi tried not to imagine her wearing it.

"Hn." If she chose it, good for her; if not, he didn't care.

"Well, at least that wasn't a 'no.'" She turned the garment around to examine it again. "I think I'll go with it!" she declared, tossing the pink and black bathing suits back into her dresser.

"For not wanting to meet up with your friend, you're certainly taking this seriously," Itachi remarked.

Akira frowned at him. "One," she began, "Misaki is not my friend. And two, just because I don't want to be there, doesn't mean I can't still look nice. I'm at least looking forward to the swimming part."

_Whatever._  He wasn't about to question her further. "I'll be going now," he stated smoothly.

"Okay," she nodded, not taking her eyes away from the blue bathing suit. "Thanks for your help."

_I shall never understand women._  Itachi thought, quickly making his way to the exit and shutting the door behind him. Akira was easy to read, but he had to admit her thought patterns were unpredictable. When Itachi was younger, Shisui always used to tell him it was "a girl thing." But, to this day, the opposite sex still confused him.

Akira came out of her room again ten minutes later. Why it took so long to put on such a skimpy outfit, he had no idea. Itachi noted the white long-sleeved jacket over her shoulders, most likely to remain descent. He thanked what little luck he had for her decision.

"Are you sure you don't want to go swimming?" she inquired. He also noticed a brightly-colored bag slung over the kunoichi's shoulder, most likely containing a towel and other necessities for the day.

Itachi averted his gaze and directed his attention to one of the undecorated walls. Even with the jacket, Akira still had a considerable amount of skin showing. "Hn. You already mentioned it would not be good for my injury."

"Oh." Her expression fell. "I guess I did."

Akira met up with Kaname and Eri halfway, and, while the three of them chatted idly, Itachi trailed reluctantly behind them.

_I cannot believe I agreed to this._  Itachi thought, peering behind them every once in a while to check for stalkers. One could never be too careful, especially after what that Misaki girl tried to pull.

"Finally here!" Kaname exclaimed.

"Took long enough," Akira muttered. Eri smiled sweetly like she always did. Ignoring the trio, the Uchiha's coal-colored orbs moved to survey the scenery before them.

The water looked surprisingly clean. Not quite see-through clean, but relatively free of trash and algae. The scenery surrounding the water wasn't too shabby either. Healthy-looking trees with luscious green leaves surrounded the area, and the scattered bits of grass and plants radiated with the same emerald sheen. It was hard to believe these colors would soon be changing for autumn.

To add to the fun, the sky was a glaring blue, similar to Akira's bathing suit. Not a single cloud marred its smooth surface, promising good weather.

_So peaceful._  There were even chirping birds in the background.

"What should we do while we wait for Misaki?" Kaname's voice broke the Uchiha from his thoughts. Then again, with these three (and soon to be five) around, so much for peaceful.

"You mean we can't just swim without her?" Akira frowned.

"She made us promise that we'd wait for her and Saito," Eri reminded softly. "Remember?"

" _And_ Saito?" Akira's jaw dropped. She palmed her forehead. " _Really_?"

Kaname looked at her friend sympathetically. "You forgot?"

"Yeah," she admitted. "I think my mind purposefully repressed it."

"We may as well make the best of it," Eri chimed, trying to be encouraging.

The three kunoichi sat on the soft grass and resumed their conversation from earlier, seeming to forget Itachi's presence while said Uchiha did his best to fade off into the scenery. They waited and waited, and, thirty minutes later, two distant figures neared them. Chakra analysis proved them to be Saito and Misaki.

"Hello! Sorry for being late!" Misaki's said shrilly as she waved to them. Saito trudged behind her, encumbered with a heavy picnic basket.

"What took you so long?!" Kaname demanded.

"Lunch took longer than anticipated," Misaki explained, motioning to Saito, who still struggled with his burden. "Six people is a lot to prepare for."

"Saito, I think you can put that down now," Eri said softly.

The basket  _plunked_  loudly to the ground as he obeyed her, spreading a small cloud of dust. Tinges of red lined Saito's cheeks, indicating exertion.

"Sure you made enough?" Kaname remarked sarcastically.

"Yes, thank you," Misaki retorted, frowning. Her gaze moved to Itachi. He resisted the urge to disperse into a mass of crows. "I see Akira managed to bring you along as well." The kunoichi advanced toward him, offering a friendly smile.

"I'm Harumi Misaki," she began. "I don't believe we were ever properly introduced,  _Itachi_."

"Hn." Like Akira, her face told him she disliked when he said that.

"Anyway, let's not just stand around. We arranged this outing for a reason, right?" Akira interrupted. Saito eagerly nodded in agreement. As Itachi suspected, the dark-haired mock of a shinobi appeared to harbor romantic feelings for the Hyuuga girl.

Itachi secretly pitied the man. He had no idea what he was trying to get himself into.

Either way, Saito seemed to enjoy the sight of Akira in a bikini. She and her friends had already stripped off their over shirts to reveal their bathing suits. But, unlike the trio, Misaki hadn't even bothered to bring a jacket.

The brunette's outfit was the same shade of pink as the tankini Akira had pulled from her dresser earlier, but there was a considerable amount of cloth, well, missing. She clearly intended to show as much skin as possible.

The strapless material covering the kunoichi's chest consisted of a single strip of cloth sewn to look twisted in the center. It looked incredibly tight, but, at the same time, Itachi wondered how she intended to move without the entire thing sliding off. The bottom piece of her suit had a high thigh cut and a low dip in the back with two decorative ties adorning either of her hips, drawing additional attention to the area.

Saito casually slipped off his shirt while the four kunoichi made a beeline for the water, clearly racing each other.

Kaname's bathing suit was a bit less revealing. Her top piece was a green ruffled halter that stopped several inches above her belly button and tied in the back. The bottom piece was the same leafy green color as her top and remained otherwise undecorated.

And then there was Eri. Her simple red one piece showed off her legs and revealed half her back and a bit of her chest area. The red color was a bit darker than his sharingan, complementing her brown eyes and dark hair.

Itachi wondered how much thought these girls had put into their clothing choices. From what he'd seen with Akira, they'd probably thought unnecessarily long and hard about it.

-

_So this is Uchiha Itachi,_  Saito thought, scrutinizing the dark-haired man.

As much as he hated to admit it, Misaki's description of the guy was pretty accurate. Itachi killed him in the looks department, although, he was beyond "quiet." He hadn't introduced himself to anyone yet. Misaki had tried, but Itachi ignored her completely. In the least, he didn't seem like a perv, which set Saito's mind at ease for Akira's immediate safety, but something still bothered him about the guy.

His chakra seemed fairly normal, but he could always be cloaking it. If he could sense chakra half as well as Misaki described, perhaps he could hide it just as well. In short, Itachi's presence unnerved him.

_What is Akira thinking living with a guy like him?_  Saito had asked himself this question countless times since Misaki's revelation the other day. What did this guy have that he didn't?

Without realizing it, during his assessment, Saito's gaze had locked with the Uchiha's. The contact alone sent chills down the shinobi's spine.

_So cold._  He hadn't even talked to him yet, and Saito already didn't want to go near him.

He shook his head, trying to ignore the feeling.  _No, I have to, for Akira's sake!_ He needed to protect her. What better way to express his love? Besides, if all went well, Misaki could use a hand, too.

On that thought, Saito took off to join the girls in the water, not once looking back.

-

"Hey, Akira, slow down!" Kaname called.

Akira ignored her and kept running toward the deep end of the lake. Smirking, she skillfully jumped off the edge, her hands streamlined in front of her for a graceful dive as she slipped into the water. Swimming a bitter deeper, Akira waited until she saw the murky forms of her friends and finally her rival before resurfacing.

_The water's warmer than I thought it'd be._  Akira breathed in the fresh air deeply after she resurfaced. Her wet braided hair clung to her back as she tread water, patiently waiting for everyone to do the same.

She noticed Saito had joined them. Drifting a bit farther back, Akira put as much space between them as possible.

"Is Itachi not coming?" Kaname inquired. The Hyuuga girl stole a glance at the Uchiha back on shore. By the looks of it, Itachi had found a nice shady cluster of trees to relax under. He sat there, one leg over the other as he leaned against the trunk of one of them, his eyes closed and an eerily peaceful expression on his face.

"Maybe one of us should go get him," Misaki suggested, smiling coyly.

"No, that's—okay…" Her words hadn't reached the sensor. Misaki was already swimming full speed toward the nearest edge of the lake.

"This should be interesting," Akira muttered, leisurely swimming after the kunoichi and leaving a confused suitor and perplexed pair of friends behind her.

-

"Hey!" Itachi irritably opened one eye to see an unpleasant view of someone's cleavage. Judging by the bathing suit, it was Misaki.

_Just when I finally managed to get some peace and quiet._

"Hn?"

"Why aren't you out swimming?" she inquired, and Itachi averted his gaze when she planted her hands on her hips, trying to make him look at her.

"It wouldn't be the best idea for me," he said simply.

"Why?"

"I have no need to tell you." Closing both eyes again, Itachi paid her no mind. When it came to females, if he ignored them, they tended to get angry and occasionally cry, but, eventually, they left him alone. This girl was no exception.

"Well, I—!"

"Misaki!"

The pair turned to see Akira running toward them. "Are you deaf or something? I called your name at least three times!" the Hyuuga girl snapped.

"Well,  _sorry_ , if I was trying to get your boyfriend to join us!" Misaki retorted.

"For the last time, he is not my boyfriend!"

By now, Saito, Eri, and Kaname joined them, curious as to what was going on.

"You honestly think any of us believe that?" Misaki fumed. "He lives with you!"

"He. Is. Not. My. Boyfriend!" Akira repeated, enunciating every syllable. "Besides, 'any of us' being you and Saito! And how did he find out about Itachi, anyway? You told him, didn't you?"

Well…" she trailed off, sounding hurt. "You never told me not to!"

"You honestly think I believe it would have done any good? Please, Misaki, I know you better than that."

"Shouldn't we do something?" Saito whispered to his fellow spectators.

Eri shook her head. "I don't think there's anything we  _can_ do," she whispered back.

_Why are they fighting over me?_  Itachi wondered.

Kaname stood back to enjoy the show.

"Then what is he, Akira?" Misaki demanded. "If he's not your boyfriend, yet you're living together, what the  _hell_  are you to each other?"

A suffocating silence filled the air.

"Well…"

Itachi waited mutely, interested to hear what she would say.

"I'm only saying this once," she declared, glancing at her rival first, and then at Saito, "so listen up." Akira paused for effect. "I," she began, "have absolutely no idea what Itachi is doing here, and, to be honest, I don't care. The reason he is living with me is because when I met him two weeks ago, he was injured and needed help, which I kindly provided!"

She shoved a finger in the Uchiha's direction before continuing. "He is only staying with me until he finishes healing, and, afterwards, I could care less what he does. The reason he is not swimming today is because it would not be beneficial for his health."

Akira exhaled deeply, indicating she was finished. "Any questions?"

No one moved.

"Well…" Misaki looked shell-shocked. "That definitely explains things."

"So, you're—" Saito's expression lit up with sparks of hope. Had he not known Akira the way he did, Itachi would be tempted to root for the guy.

"Yeah," she cut off, not looking happy about it. In Saito's eyes, she wasn't "off limits," anymore.

Itachi let out a sigh. Albeit untactful, her explanation had covered the basics. He suddenly froze, a chill running through his blood. Wait, that chakra…

"Anyway—" Akira began.

"Akira," Itachi interrupted in the calmest tone he could muster.

A flash of silver caught the Uchiha's eye. He had to act now!

Jumping to his feet, Itachi activated his sharingan and threw himself at Akira.

His body collided with the Hyuuga girl just in time, bringing them to the ground. Unfortunately, the person standing behind them wasn't so lucky. Itachi had instantly recognized the flash of silver as a kunai, and that chakra… well, he almost didn't believe it himself.

A shinobi headband gleamed in the sunlight as their attacker revealed himself. The insignia: Amegakure. This ninja was part of the rogue team that had been chasing him and Kisame.

"Just testing your reflexes," their attacker said, probably grinning behind that mask of his. Itachi knew the man's words were directed at him, but the phrase was general enough that nobody else realized it.

A matching black mask and hood concealed the shiobi's face and hair, similar to what Kakuzu wore. His clothes looked un-kept and dirty, indicating he'd worn the same thing for quite some time. His rest of his outfit was also black without a trace of skin showing, save for the area around his eyes. Not the smartest choice, given the bright day, but, considering the situation, he probably didn't have anything else.

Blood dripped from a kunai clutched in his palm while blue eyes glinted menacingly, looking wide enough to pop out of his skull. The blood was neither Itachi nor Akira's.

Kaname lay on the ground at his feet, hands clutching her chest. When she brought them away, both palms were sticky with blood.


	4. Chapter 4

Itachi jumped off Akira so quickly she barely registered he was on top of her. The Ame nin rushed forward, his next target the group standing behind the fallen Kaname.

Saito, being the gentleman he was, grabbed Misaki's waist to pull her out the way. Eri reacted more aggressively and met the attack head on, blocking his arm and initiating several strikes of her own before Itachi stepped in. This Ame nin, whoever he was, wasn't serious yet, and Eri didn't stand a chance.

Just then, Itachi seized the shinobi's wrist, catching the man's kunai inches from Eri's cheek. Itachi locked eyes with his opponent and quickly weaved seals with his free hand. He had to get out of here. Not only did he wish to prevent further injury, but he couldn't have this ninja revealing something vital about him.

As if on cue, Akira ran toward them, byakugan activated, but his genjutsu initiated seconds before her attack, a flock of cawing crows replacing Itachi and his opponent. Confused, Akira skidded to an ungraceful stop, staring dumbfounded at the place where he and Kaname's attacker had stood only seconds ago.

The crows disappeared one by one. No one moved, but, finally, someone spoke.

"What the hell was that?!" Akira yelled.

-

Itachi didn't recognize his new location. All he knew was that it was away—away from Akira and her friends, and away from where he would have to hold back.

"Heh, smart move," the Ame nin remarked, whipping out a summoning scroll. Itachi noted his opponent purposefully avoided making further eye contact with him, preventing additional genjutsu. "As I said," he began, "I was only testing your reflexes."

Itachi's expression remained unchanging as the man tore open the scroll and spun it around himself, summoning a multitude of weapons with the blood from a previous cut. Weapons of all shapes and sizes now hung on chains around the man's body.

"Your partner killed my entire squad, you know." His tone transitioned from casual to seething. "Neither of us could find your body, though. I figured I'd leave him alive to see if he could lead me to you, but no such luck." He sighed. "Truly a pity. I was looking forward to killing both of you myself. That shark partner of yours even high tailed before I had a chance to get rid of him!"

Itachi waited, deciding not to attack while the man blabbed useful information. Good, Kisame was still alive. It also confirmed Itachi's hope that his partner had gone looking for him rather than simply returning to Akatsuki.

"But who would've thought you'd end up taking advantage of an innocent girl like that." Itachi's eyes narrowed at the assassin's next words. "Then again that is what criminals like you are known for, isn't it?"

Itachi had to grit his teeth to keep from lashing out. Clearly, this man was trying to rile him, and, somehow, he knew all the right buttons to push. Now all he needed to do was mention the Uchiha clan and his death sentence was set.

"That girl is merely healing me. She has nothing to do with any of this," Itachi stated. "I do not understand why you felt the need to harm one of her friends." And now he was just confusing himself. Why did he feel the need to defend her?

"Heh. Didn't know you cared." The Ame nin chuckled evilly, twirling a kunai, one of many, on his gloved finger before catching it. He didn't falter once, indicating all those weapons weren't just for show. "Well, let's not just stand here chatting, shall we? I have a mission to finish, alone or not."

"You know my name. It's only fair that I know yours before we fight," Itachi said, his voice deadpan. He couldn't exactly see his face and identify him.

"Fine then." The wrinkles in his mask indicated a smirk. "Shizuka Aoi."

_Shizuka Aoi, huh?_  Itachi didn't recall ever hearing his name before.  _I'll have to look that up sometime._

He struck Itachi as an arrogant shinobi, which surprised him. He didn't seem like a coward, so how had he been the only survivor on his team? The Uchiha had a feeling he would soon find out. Aoi's chakra was rather unique, after all.

Aoi seized his first weapon, a small sickle connected to a chain, and dashed toward at the Uchiha. Being unarmed, Itachi side-stepped the attack and snagged a kunai off the man's outfit.

Itachi dodged the next hit and used the kunai to block the rebound, metal clashing against metal as Aoi threw a strike from three o'clock. That chain on Aoi's weapon did not bode well for him. Considering the terrain, it wouldn't be the best idea for him to use a fire jutsu. Starting a forest fire would not assist him in keeping a low profile.

Limited to non-destructive jutsu, he needed genjutsu to win, which required the strain of his sharingan. Worse yet, this shinobi was quite the adversary. He had a way with evading the Uchiha's subtle attempts to make eye contact, limiting most of their battle to taijutsu and filched weaponry.

"You're all talk," Aoi spat, tossing a wave of kunai. Itachi evaded with ease, flipping through the air like a leaf in the wind. All was well until he hit the ground, where Aoi waited with another attack ready. Itachi blocked him, but there was one small problem.

A familiar pain shot through his lower abdomen. He didn't have to look down to confirm the blood seeping through his shirt. Aoi also took notice of this and quickly used the situation to utilize his next weapon of choice, a small katana.

Hand clutching his injury, Itachi retreated as the Ame slashed at him, nicking the Uchiha's left arm.

"Suffering from prior damage, eh, Uchiha?" Aoi laughed sadistically while Itachi's eyes darted around, searching for a nearby weapon. Nothing within reach, but, then again, teleportation jutsu existed for a reason. A series of rushed hand signs later, Itachi appeared behind his opponent—or at least what he'd thought was behind him—with a renewed stock of kunai and shuriken.

Aoi had disappeared into thin air.

_That's odd. Surely my sharingan would have detected him using a teleportation jutsu._

Aoi's chakra presence reappeared just in time. Itachi ducked, barely dodging what would have been a fatal stab to his head.

_So that's it._  Clever, he had to admit, but not clever enough. It certainly explained how someone as arrogant as he had managed to escape someone as ruthless as Kisame. To test his theory, the Uchiha flung his last round of kunai at his opponent. As expected, Aoi's chakra disappeared from his radar again as he "teleported" away.

Itachi smirked. He'd have to risk it. With the way his injury was bleeding, he couldn't continue much longer without possibly losing.

The Ame nin's chakra flickered to life again. In turn, a tear of blood slid from Itachi's left eye.

_Amaterasu!_

His jutsu hit its target. A scream echoed through the woods, reaching ears within miles. Itachi's eyes glued to his right flank where a cluster of black flames sprang to life. In the midst of the flames stood—or knelt, actually—a rather distressed Aoi.

"Damn you, Uchiha!" he growled, the jutsu eagerly feasting on his body.

Itachi's stare remained unchanging. He concentrated harder, pouring more chakra into the flames to increase their power. "Burn in hell, shinobi."

A final scream tore through the air before his opponent was reduced to ash. It was over.

Another tear of blood slid down the Uchiha's cheek as he forced the black flames to extinguish. Closing his eyes, he clutched the area with his free hand and exhaled deeply in an attempt to relax his choppy breathing.

Less than a minute later, minus the blood stains below his eye, he was back to his usual self. That had been exerting—a little  _too_  exerting.

_It's been a while since I've used that._  Itachi thought, reopening his eyes. These laid back days with Akira were making him weak. At least he'd been strong enough to win the fight. Despite the surprise attack and the unfamiliar territory, Aoi had been an easy opponent after he'd seen through the shinobi's jutsu.

Teleportation wasn't quite how Itachi would describe it. It reminded the Uchiha of his former sensei, only Aoi's technique hadn't been nearly as flawless. There was a high possibility that his jutsu was a kekki genkai that captured his opponent in a genjutsu, albeit not a very powerful one, and allowed its user to move at inhuman speeds difficult for even a high class shinobi to attain. Since said user's movements were so fast, it would appear as though he had teleported.

As for the disappearing chakra, that was a part of the genjutsu. The illusion made it appear as though Aoi's presence had vanished, and then it would briefly reappear when the user transitioned to another jutsu. Most shinobi wouldn't have time to act.

Itachi owed his victory to the sharingan and his highly trained reflexes. It had taken little effort to win after he figured out that much. All he had needed to do was carefully trace Aoi's movements with his sharingan and then act accordingly.

Itachi stumbled over the charred ground where his Amaterasu had burned only minutes ago. Oddly enough, he found it more difficult than expected to find his way through the forest. His vision wasn't just blurry anymore—everything seemed to have a haze looming over it, and objects were appearing darker now.

His eyesight was worsening. This wasn't good. In the least, he had enough chakra left for one more teleportation jutsu. Better to risk that than to wander around aimlessly.

Forming a final set of hand signs, Itachi locked onto Akira's chakra signature and allowed the jutsu to do the rest.

-

"Any sign of him?" Akira asked, stealing a glance at Saito and Misaki who stood watch while she and Eri poured their chakra into healing the unconscious Kaname.

"Nothing," Saito admitted.

A look of defeat on her face, the Hyuuga girl returned her attention to her copper-haired friend.

_Where are you, Itachi?_

Seconds after her last thought, the open skin on Kaname's chest closed and Akira's ears detected a familiar chorus of caws. She whipped her head to see the exact person she'd been worrying about.

_Itachi…_

Without thinking, she stopped the chakra flow to her hands, jumped to her feet, and ran toward him. Before comprehending exactly what she was doing, Akira flung her arms around his neck, relief washing over her now that she knew he was safe.

Itachi froze the moment his skin made contact with Akira's. Oddly enough, his mind blanked.

Was she…  _hugging_  him?

The girl that he was supposedly "taking advantage of," according to Aoi, actually seemed happy to see him. It was unnerving, to be honest. Itachi had never been a touchy-feely person, and hugs were just out of the question for him. The last time he'd been embraced by another human being had been… well, nearly a decade ago, before the Uchiha massacre.

Needless to say, it didn't bring back any pleasant memories. He refused to budge until she released him.

"What happened?" Akira demanded, the dynamic of her tone increasing. "Where's that shinobi that attacked us?" Her demeanor immediately swung from concerned to interrogating.

"Don't worry about him," Itachi assured, thankful he'd been smart enough to wipe away the blood from his eyes before returning. "He won't be showing his face around here again."

Before she could go on and demand what he meant, a moan sounded in Kaname's direction. She was awake.

"Kaname!" Akira dashed toward her comatose friend and collapsed to her knees beside Eri, who had faithfully remained there the entire time.

Kaname had passed out from shock shortly after Itachi's disappearance. To prevent anything worse from happening, Akira and Eri immediately set to work on healing their friend and had been at it ever since.

"Wha… what happen?" Kaname murmured, her eyes half-lidded. Thankfully, the worst side effect seemed to be drowsiness.

"Nothing of importance," Akira assured. "We'll tell you later."

"Why is…" The kunoichi's emerald eyes descended down to where Aoi's kunai had slit the front of her bathing suit in half. The green material was soaked with dried blood and just barely concealing her breasts. "Ah!" Her hands rushed to cover the area before her top completely slid off.

"Here." Eri handed the kunoichi the jacket she'd been wearing earlier. "This should help."

With the assistance of her two friends, Kaname sat up and hastily pulled on the jacket, gripping either side of the material to cover her chest.

Eri spoke next. "Uchiha-san, your arm..." All attention shifted to the area. "You're bleeding."

"It's nothing." Itachi quickly concealed the wound with his hand. Dammit, he'd missed that.

"Ieh, let me heal you," she insisted, getting to her feet and walking toward him. Itachi didn't bother pushing her hand away. He knew it wouldn't work, but he'd let her try. As expected, she pulled her hand away when the poison in his system rejected her chakra with a shocking jolt.

"Akira, you wouldn't happen to have any antidote on you, would you?" Itachi said through gritted teeth, referring to what she used to aid his body in blood clotting.

"Y-yeah," she stuttered. After rummaging through the colorful beach bag she'd brought with her, the Hyuuga girl brought out a small vial. "Here." She pressed the object into his open palm.

He popped it open and poured the contents down his throat, the medicine leaving a bitter taste in his mouth. It wasn't pleasant, but it certainly beat bleeding to death.

"So, what happens now?" Misaki inquired.

"It wouldn't be a good idea for Kaname to remain here, but you could stay if you'd like," Eri spoke up. "What about you, Akira?"

"I've had enough action for one day," she admitted. "Besides, considering his condition, it would be a good idea for Itachi to go home."

Saito and Misaki stood there, backs leaned up against nearby tree trunks. Their positions hadn't changed at all in the past few minutes. Neither of them knew healing ninjutsu and therefore had no way of helping anyone.

"It probably wouldn't be a good idea for Kaname to walk home," Akira remarked. She turned to her dark-haired friend. "Who should carry her? I don't mind if you don't want to, Eri."

"No, that's alright—hey!" Kaname stopped mid-sentence as Itachi stooped over and scooped the kunoichi into his strong arms. Kaname turned a deep shade of crimson, despite the near-death experience. Itachi did his best to ignore her.

"Just lead the way," he said shortly.

"Right," Eri sighed. Akira smiled softly, looking touched by his unexpected act of kindness.

Itachi did his best to ignore her, too.

-

Misaki cleared her throat, breaking silence building up between her and Saito after the others left.

"Well, I failed miserably," she declared dejectedly. "How'd things go with Akira?"

"Not good," Saito admitted. "I…" he trailed off, "I couldn't do anything when that shinobi, attacked her. Boyfriend or not, that Itachi guy acted more quickly than I ever could have."

"And?"

"And, as much as I hate to admit it, he might be a better choice for her."

"He  _was_ amazing," Misaki agreed. "Stepping in so gallantly…" Her mind flashed back to when Saito had pulled her out of harm's way.

"By the way," she added, "thanks for saving me." He didn't seem to hear her over his moping. The brunette frowned. "I  _said_ , thanks for saving me!" she repeated irritably, breaking the shinobi out of his thoughts.

"Huh, what?"

Misaki sighed. "Never mind." Awkward silence built up between them again. "I guess I'll have to give up my hopes of winning him," Misaki murmured, unintentionally thinking aloud.

Saito raised an eyebrow, surprised at her words. "Whoa, whoa, wait! Are you sure you're feeling okay?" he inquired, pressing a hand to the back of her forehead. "That isn't something you'd normally say."

"Yes, I'm  _fine_!" Misaki growled, slapping away his hand. "And you're one to talk! You're no better off than I am!"

"I suppose you're right," Saito admitted, looking away from her and staring up at the bright blue sky. "Do you want to try again sometime?"

Misaki sighed again. "To be honest Saito, despite all that's happened, he's rather boring and, dare I say it, rude," she began, blushing faintly. "I admit he's easy on the eyes, but I tried talking to him and he completely ignored me. Not to mention, Akira said that his stay isn't permanent." She folded her arms across her chest, nose in the air. "That being said, I see no point in getting attached to him."

Saito blinked a few times, tempted to pinch himself to ensure he wasn't dreaming. "So you're giving up?"

She didn't reply, her lips creased into a frown.

Saito couldn't resist saying more. " _Really_?"

"Hey, I just admitted defeat! You have no idea how rare that is!" Misaki snapped, wanting nothing more than to slap the smug expression off his face. Thankfully for him, she refrained from doing so.

"Well, I just admitted that Itachi has me beat for Akira," Saito retorted. Misaki kept scowling, which, for some reason, annoyed him. "And would you stop looking at me like that? It really doesn't suit you." Icy blue glared into vivid orange, but, after a few seconds, the tension faded.

"I guess we're going to have to find a different activity to occupy the afternoon then." Looking away, Misaki motioned to the forgotten picnic basket. "We didn't even have lunch together. And I wanted to see if Itachi liked my cooking!"

_What was that about defeat?_  Saito wondered. He quickly steered his mind away from the topic. Ah well. One way or another, he wanted at least one good thing to happen today, so he may as well offer.

"If you want, I could eat with you."

"What?"

"I didn't do very much, but we were swimming, so I'm hungry," Saito repeated, elaborating. "I may not be able to finish it all, but I can try."

Her eyes immediately lit up, warming the shinobi's heart. For once, she smiled genuinely. "You'd better. I don't want any of this to go to waste!"

Moments later, Misaki dragged him over to the shady area where they'd abandoned the picnic basket. Despite the situation, Sait couldn't help but grin, too. At least he'd managed to make Misaki smile. The duo sat down on the soft grass while the brunette cracked open the goods and began distributing them.

"You know what, Misaki?" Saito began, making the Whirlpool girl look up from her task. "You're all right."

Still smiling, Misaki blushed. "Thanks, so are you."

Turning her attention back to food serving, Misaki found herself dwelling on the small compliment while Saito made an effort to keep his facial expression pleasant. One thought dominated his mind:  _I hope she's not a terrible cook._

_-_

"Just a bit farther, Kaname," Eri informed softly as the four of them made their way down the path. Signs of civilization were in sight now.

"No rush." The formerly injured kunoichi was not complaining in the least. She seemed perfectly comfortable with Itachi carrying her home. If anything, she was enjoying it a little too much.

Itachi, in an attempt to soothe his over-active mind, tried to tell himself he was simply doing the right thing. It wouldn't be appropriate to make Akira or Eri do something like this when he was perfectly capable. Besides, he didn't have the chance to do the right thing very often.

"You can put her over here." Holding the door open to Kaname's house, Eri motioned to a couch only a few yards from the doorway.

Itachi silently obeyed. Kaname, however, was not so silent.

"Thank you so, much, Itachi!" she beamed as he gently set her down on the soft cushions. He nodded politely in reply.

"I'll take it from here," Eri assured, coming to his rescue. Her gaze rested on the incision on his left arm. "You two should probably head home."

"Hn."

"Thanks, Eri," Akira said, stepping forward to embrace her friend. She followed through with the same show of affection for Kaname. "Be sure to take it easy, Kaname."

"I will!" she assured, and, with that, Itachi and Akira left.

"It's good to know she's alright," Akira murmured once they were a good distance away from the house. Silence built between them for a few minutes. "So, what exactly happened?" Akira finally asked.

"Define 'what.'" Itachi had to resist the urge to smirk at her expression.

"What," she began, her eyes narrowed, "being what happened to the guy who attacked Kaname? You failed to elaborate that in your explanation."

Itachi didn't reply immediately. Would it really be a good idea to say that he was dead? "He won't be coming back to the Whirlpool Village."

"You said that already!"

"Then just accept it and move on."

"Why you—" she cut herself off, clenching her fists. She looked so infuriated that he half-expected to see smoke coming out of her ears. The Uchiha allowed himself a smirk this time. Her reactions were so predictable.

"He won't be bothering you again. What more information do you need?"

Akira sighed, obviously dissatisfied with his answer. "Just making sure."

"Hn." The awkward silence returned with a vengeance. Once again, Akira was the one to break it.

"Thank you for…  _everything_ today…" she trailed off. Itachi quickly noticed of the red color blooming on her cheeks. He said nothing. She took that as a "Go on."

"I don't even want to think about what would have happened if you weren't there, and I know you didn't even  _want_ to be there in the first place, so…."

"Hn?"

Her expression immediately changed back from embarrassed to angry. "Would you stop saying that?!"

"Saying what?" She knew he was just playing dumb. He could clearly see the red vein popping in her forehead.

"Anyway," she continued, her sweet demeanor long gone, "thank you for saving my friends despite all that's happened!" She glared daggers at him, contradicting her thank you, but Itachi didn't mind in the slightest. He still had no idea why flustering her amused him so much.

"You're welcome then." But he may as well try to calm her down before things got out of hand. He didn't want her being angry at him so close to lunch time. Speaking of which, he was a bit hungry.

"Well, now that that's settled," she began, increasing her pace a few strides. "Race you home? I didn't get much of a workout swimming."

Itachi didn't bother to follow her lead. "Need I remind you that I'm injured?"

She frowned, slowing down a bit. "Need I remind you that you're a complete stick in the mud?"

The Uchiha sighed aloud, in denial of what he was about to do. Why did she consistently feel the need to call him names?

"Fine. You're the healing nin."

Her face glowed with joy, not that he cared if she was happy or anything. To be honest, Itachi had no idea why he'd chosen to give in to her.

"Last person there does the dishes!" she called, taking off in an attempt to obtain a good head start. Itachi just half-smiled as he channeled the remainder of his chakra to his feet. This girl had no idea who she was dealing with.

A powerful gust of wind whizzed by the Hyuuga girl, whipping her blonde hair in all directions. She thought nothing of it until she reached her destination a few minutes later to see her competitor patiently waiting for her on the front porch. Itachi purposely made an effort to look bored.

"Ah. Finally made it I see."

She scowled and angrily thrust her pointer finger at him. "Hey! When the hell did you pass me?!"

Turning around, Itachi chuckled to himself and slid the front door open to make his way inside. She continued ranting inaudibly.

He was actually beginning to like it here.


	5. Chapter 5

Akira panted heavily, hands on her knees.  _Almost there,_  she thought, rising back to her full height. Just a bit more and she could finally master her new jutsu.

Against her better judgment, she left Itachi unsupervised at home while she trained by herself for a bit. It was a great stress reliever, but she shivered to think what might happen while she wasn't there.

Snatching up the water bottle she brought with her, Akira hastily unscrewed the cap and took a sip. She should be heading home now. After all, she had been gone for nearly two hours and it was way past lunch time. The last thing she wanted was for Itachi to come looking for her.

Although, quite the contrary, looking for her was the last thing on the Uchiha's mind. She came home to an empty house, and, after rushing back outside and activating her byakugan, she discovered her fellow resident a few miles south doing some training himself. Deciding it best not to disturb him, Akira headed back inside and made her way to the bathroom.

Due to the intensity of her training, she was covered in sweat and in dire need of a shower.

She slammed the bathroom door behind her before yanking out her hair tie and peeling off her first article of clothing. Knowing Itachi, he wouldn't be back for a while, so she didn't have to worry about bringing a change of clothes in with her. Akira finished undressing and turned on the shower. The inviting sound of water beating against the inner ceramic wall serenaded the Hyuuga girl until it was finally hot enough for her to jump in.

Liquid cascaded down the kunoichi's bare back, soaking her loose blonde hair while the steam soothed her aching muscles. Akira breathed a contented sigh. After a training session like that, a hot shower felt heavenly.

-

Itachi inclined his head toward Akira's house as he felt her chakra return.

_Akira's back?_ About time. Stepping forward to withdraw the kunai he had thrown at a nearby tree, Itachi smoothly returned the weapons back into the pouch he discovered in Akira's room earlier that morning. With that, Itachi turned on his heel to head back.

He had been testing the affects of his worsened eyesight. He hadn't fiddled with any ninjutsu yet, just simple weapons training and reflexes. The results were mediocre and disappointing, but he should be thankful he could see anything at this point.

His eyes were losing their light more quickly than anticipated. He needed to learn to fight or at least fake it without using his vision and fast, although Itachi was not entirely sure how. His senses were sharp, but his perception of things heavily relied on his eyes.

Now back at the house, Itachi slid open the front door to enter. After leaving his shoes in their usual place, the Uchiha fully noticed how damp his clothes were. Despite only honing taijutsu that afternoon, he managed to work up a sweat. It had felt good to not hold back.

Upon entering Akira's room, Itachi detected the scent of steaming water. Akira had taken a shower while he was away. For once, they thought alike. Itachi too was quite ready for a hot shower.

After snatching a change of clothes from the stash Akira purchased for him, the Uchiha nonchalantly walked the remainder of the distance to the one and only bathroom in the house.

-

Upon turning off the shower water, Akira remained in place for a few minutes, savoring the warmth. Once the steam evaporated, the kunoichi shivered, instinctively raising her arms to cover her chest. Without the hot water beating down on her, the area became cold very quickly.

Pausing to squeeze the moisture out of her soft blonde hair, Akira gripped the curtain and pulled it aside to step out of the shower and blindly grope around for a towel.

Her fingers made contact with something, but if felt solid with an odd, inviting smoothness to it. Most certainly not the fluffy white linen she desired. Turning her head, Akira's lavender eyes grew to twice their normal size.

Standing before her was an equally wide-eyed, half-naked Uchiha Itachi. He looked at her as if he had never seen another human being before. Then it hit her: she was still naked.

-

This could not be happening. Absolutely not. It had to be an illusion, a dream, anything!

But no matter how Itachi looked at it, this was reality. The Uchiha could only wonder what the hell reality was thinking throwing him into a situation like this.

Casually enough, Itachi had entered the bathroom and tossed his clean clothes into the corner before stripping off his shirt, revealing a muscular physique and smooth skin, save for the occasional battle scar and the unhealed wound from the poisoned katana.

At that point, nothing seemed out of the ordinary until he noticed Akira's clothes were there as well. Then it occurred to him how unnervingly close her chakra felt. Sure enough, said girl stepped out of the shower seconds later, her pale skin sleek with water.

She didn't detect him at first. With her face turned away, the blonde kunoichi flipped her long damp hair over her shoulder before extending her right hand with the intention of what looked like grabbing a towel. Instead, her hand touched his bare chest.

Itachi didn't move, even when Akira looked his way. It baffled him, because he, Uchiha Itachi, the S ranked criminal and member of Akatsuki, never just ceased moving!

It took a second for the Hyuuga girl to realize the situation. Judging by the glassy look in her eyes, she, like him, was in denial. But, as he said before, this was definitely reality. A sad, terrible reality that he was about to suffer for. Even with his poor eyesight, Akira was close enough for him to see all of her clearly.

For the longest time, nobody moved. Then, Akira withdrew her hand from his chest. The Hyuuga girl's face contorted into an expression of intense fury, her narrowed eyes glaring holes in him. Itachi remained frozen in place.

"What the hell," she seethed, clenching her fist, "do you think you're doing?!"

Thanks to years of training and a wonderful thing called muscle memory, Itachi dodged her first punch without thinking. His mind snapped back to attention. He had to get out of here, before this terrible misunderstanding became any worse.

That punch was only the beginning of Akira's barrage. But, blinded by rage, Akira failed to consider their territory. The tiled bathroom floor was damp and therefore slippery from the shower she had taken, and Akira was about to find out that throwing a punch on a slippery floor was not the best idea if she didn't want to trip.

And trip she did, right into Itachi's arms.

He hadn't expected her to fall, and, because of this, Itachi hadn't thought to stagger his leg back to stabilize his stance. The combined factors resulted in the couple tumbling to the floor in a giant heap of exposed skin, flowing hair, and missing towels.

-

"Won't Akira be surprised to see us!" Kaname grinned as she and Eri approached the Hyuuga girl's house. Continuing up to the front door, Eri timidly knocked.

"I'm sure she'll be happy to know you made a full recovery from yesterday," Eri agreed.

After the previous day's disaster, the three Whirlpool kunoichi agreed never to mention the subject again once they were sure Kaname was completely healed. Now that she was, Eri suggested they visit Akira and proceed to drag her out for some much-needed girl time. But, oddly enough, Akira wasn't answering her door.

"Do you think she's there?" Kaname wondered.

Eri shrugged and knocked again. Still no answer.

"Maybe she's in the shower?" Kaname suggested.

Eri shook her head. "Then Uchiha-san would answer for her."

Seconds after the kunoichi's words, a loud  _crash_  rang out.

"We're intruding!" Kaname declared. The door was unlocked, and, after flinging it open, Kaname dashed inside with Eri close behind.

-

Just his luck, Itachi narrowly missed landing on the small pile of clothes that would have spared him a splitting headache. He must have blacked out for a second, because the next thing Itachi knew, he lay on his back with a heavy weight on his chest, preventing him from sitting up or breathing. The Uchiha's vision finally focused enough for him to see what was going on, but, at the moment, Itachi wished he were still unconscious.

A familiar blonde head was buried face down in his chest. Worse yet, the owner of said head was ungracefully sprawled on top of him, pinning the rest of Itachi's limbs. When she looked up to meet his gaze, Itachi swore she used a genjutsu to keep him immobile.

"I-Itachi…" Akira stuttered.

The two mindlessly stared at each other. Akira seemed to forget  _she_  was the one lying on top of  _him_.

"Would you mind getting off me?"

"Eh?" His words broke the Hyuuga girl out of her trance. "What?"

"I can't move. Please get  _off_!"

Without further hesitation, Akira retreated to steady herself on a nearby wall while Itachi staggered to his feet, leaning his back against the door. His fingers gingerly brushed the back of his head. As suspected, a new lump had formed.

"Why are you yelling at me? You walked in on me, hentai!" Akira snapped, regaining her composure.

Itachi didn't reply. How could he? He didn't have an answer. Not to mention, the throbbing cranial pain disabled his usual reasoning ability.

And just when he thought things couldn't get any worse, they did.

A heavy object smacked Itachi in the back, disrupting his balance once again. The room he and Akira shared was hardly spacious, and, with nothing to steady himself on, the Uchiha fell in the only available direction: forward, where Akira still stood.

Another  _crash_  ripped through the air. Only this time, Akira was the one being pinned down.

"Is everyone alright?" Itachi's blood ran cold when he recognized the intruder's voice: Kaname, with Eri right behind her.

-

"Is everyone alright?" The words escaped Kaname's lips before she properly evaluated the situation. She and Eri had come running from the first crash, and then, after literally throwing herself at the door to open it, another loud noise followed, although, neither kunoichi expected something like this.

No one seemed to be in trouble. Quite the contrary, actually. It was just Itachi and Akira. Together. In the bathroom. Naked.

Eri slammed the door before either of them could see anything else.

"Eri," Kaname began, her face frozen in an expression of shock, "we both saw that, right?"

Her friend nodded slowly. The two healers turned to each other with a mutual look of understanding. Being careful not to push, both girls pressed an ear to the bathroom door.

-

"Dammit…" Akira swore under her breath, somehow managing to speak despite having the wind knocked out of her. Stars obscured her vision and by now she was painfully aware she had tripped again. What was the cause now?

The first thing she saw once her eyes focused was Uchiha Itachi's face resting mere centimeters away from hers. Next, she noticed his body firmly pressed over hers, their noses touching and legs intertwined. Akira turned bright red.  _What the—_

A shooting pain interrupted her thoughts. On top of everything else, she also had one hell of a headache. Akira forced herself to concentrate despite the discomfort. She needed to extricate herself.

The kunoichi attempted to shove his massive form off of her, but failed miserably. Pushing himself to his knees, the Uchiha released her, albeit more slowly than she would have liked. Free at last, Akira reached out to snatch the nearest towel off the wall hook and quickly wrapped it around herself. She jumped to her feet, anger renewed. Her step swayed slightly, but Itachi didn't dare offer a hand to steady her.

Another thought occurred to her: Kaname and Eri were just outside the door.

_What are they doing here at a time like this?_ Akira wondered, extremely frustrated. And she had thought it was embarrassing when her friends discovered Itachi. This was a hundred times worse!

"Get. Out." She didn't know what else to say.

Itachi stared at her blankly.

"GET THE HELL OUT!" Akira screamed, adding a few syllables. Pausing to stoop down, she scooped up the clothes Itachi brought in with him and flung them toward his face. He caught every garment without a problem.

"You do realize that wasn't not my fault," he stated coolly.

"I don't care, get out!"

He finally obeyed her but not without first exploiting Kaname and Eri's eavesdropping.

"What are you doing?" Itachi frowned. Laughing nervously, both of them scurried away from the now open door.

"Uchiha-san," Eri greeted, smiling once she and Kaname were a safe distance away. Her efforts failed to calm him. In return, Itachi gave the duo the darkest glare they had ever seen before walking out of sight.

Kaname looked torn between ogling the man and quivering in fear.

Curiosity replacing her shock, Eri's chocolate gaze lingered on the shirtless Uchiha, specifically his left bicep. Kaname didn't seem to notice, but there was a small black tattoo resembling the shape of a leaf. Eri knew that symbol. Unmistakably, that was a leaf ANBU tattoo, the mark of the Konohagakure elite.

Her ebony brow crinkled in confusion. What was someone from Konoha doing here?

"Ahem!"

All eyes turned to the towel-clad Hyuuga girl. Arms folded across her chest, Akira glared at them with enough intensity to rival Itachi. Her expression soon softened and a light blush replaced the anger burning in her eyes.

"That was NOT what it looked like," she said flatly.

"I'm sure." Kaname's sarcastic tone earned her an elbow in the ribs from Eri.

"Then what was…  _that_?" Eri trailed off, blushing a bit herself, but willing to hear her friend out. She had to admit something about that situation seemed a bit off. Kaname, on the other hand, wasn't so patient.

"So, what'd we interrupt?" she inquired smugly.

Eri elbowed her again, giving the copper-haired kunoichi a warning glare. With a brief "Itai!" of submission, Kaname shut her mouth.

"Well?" Eri tried to make her voice sound understanding.

Looking away, Akira awkwardly shifted her weight between each foot. "Could I get dressed first?"

-

One new set of clothes, two minutes, and three cups of tea later, all was explained.

"So both crashes we heard were just you two tripping?" Kaname blinked in confusion. With Akira fully dressed and her headache healed, the three of them now gathered around the Hyuuga girl's dining room table. "But what were both of you doing in the bathroom at the same time?"

"I already told you, Kaname. I don't know why, but  _he_  walked in on  _me_. Knowing that Uchiha, he probably thought I was gone already," Akira frowned, unaware of how right she was. "Besides, you two were responsible for part of it. Don't open the door so forcibly next time."

"Sorry," Kaname laughed nervously, a sweat drop running down the side of her face. "Speaking of Itachi, where did he go?"

Akira and Eri shrugged.

"Who knows?" Akira sighed. "He's unpredictable."

"I'm sure he'll come back when he's hungry," Eri assured.

"Anyway," Kaname interjected, turning her attention back to Akira, "we still haven't told you our reason for coming here."

"Oh?" Akira eyed them suspiciously. "And why might that be?"

Eri paused to sip her tea. "We were thinking that you could use some time away from home, so Kaname and I were wondering if you wanted to go to town for some shopping."

"Really?" Akira's expression brightened. "That sounds like fun!"

"And we both agreed that Itachi shouldn't come. You're okay with leaving him here for a while, right?" Kaname confirmed.

Akira nodded her approval. "I've left him here by himself before and nothing detrimental has happened."

The trio headed out roughly ten minutes later, all thoughts concerning the day's misunderstanding aside. They reached town in five short minutes, although, oddly enough, their tiny village bustled with more excitement than usual.

"I wonder what's going on," Kaname remarked, curiously examining the many stalls and stands being set up. The smell of freshly baked goods wafted through the air. Then, a little girl and what was probably her older brother brushed by them, both clad in colorful yukata.

"Must be a festival," Eri deduced. "That's odd. I don't recall hearing about it."

"Well, that makes our job easier!" Kaname declared, seizing both her friends' wrists. "I know the perfect place to hit first!"

Before Akira could protest, she and Eri were dragged into clothing store. Kimonos of all colors, shapes, and sizes were displayed in the shop windows and every other place imaginable. The Hyuuga girl immediately realized her friend's intention.

"And we need kimonos  _why_?" Akira frowned as they browsed through the many selections.

"For the festival of course!" Kaname grinned, thrusting a few garments into her friend's arms. "Hm." Her expression became thoughtful at her next choice. "Eri, what do you think?"

"For who?" the dark-haired kunoichi inquired.

"For you, of course!" Kaname replied. She paused to glance around the vicinity. "Now, where are those fitting rooms?"

When the trio left the store, each girl emerged with a purchase of her own, although some more begrudgingly than others.

"I can't believe you made me buy that," Akira lamented, shifting the plastic shopping bag on her wrist. "That was expensive, too."

"Don't worry about it," Kaname assured, also lugging a bag of her own. "It's okay to splurge sometimes."

"Yeah, but still…" Akira dejectedly examined the remaining amount of money in her wallet. "I wish I'd brought more."

"It looks beautiful on you, though," Eri said. "And I'd have to say the same for you, Kaname."

"Thanks. I can't wait to wear it tonight!" Kaname grinned. "Now, where should we go next?"

Dusk came before Kaname was finally satisfied and agreed to head home. But, despite being dragged around, Akira had to admit she had fun. Shopping with her friends was a nice break from reality, even if she bought a few things she didn't really need.

At the moment, they were heading home to finalize their kimonos for the evening. They agreed to meet up again at the festival, but there was one small detail Akira overlooked.

"Hey, Akira," Eri began.

"Hm?"

"Do you plan on bringing Uchiha-san with you to the festival?" she inquired. "He's never been into town before, has he?"

"I suppose he hasn't." Akira shifted her gaze to the ground.

Kaname eyed the Hyuuga girl suspiciously. "Are you still mad at him?"

"Well, I didn't exactly clear things up with him. He disappeared before I could say anything," she admitted, tapping her index fingers together. "To be honest, I'm not sure if Itachi would actually  _want_  to get out of the house. Knowing him, he'd rather stay home and read or something."

"But you never know until you ask," Eri pointed out. "Besides, even if you aren't, he probably still thinks you're mad at him. What better way to clear things up?"

Akira looked away again. "I… I guess so…"

_Would Itachi actually want to go to a festival with me?_  she wondered as they neared the splitting paths between their houses. Her mind unwillingly flashed back to their humiliating experience earlier that day, making her blush again.

_What am I getting embarrassed for? That was his fault, anyway._

"Good luck, Akira!" Kaname called as she and Eri veered left while she continued walking straight.

"Bye!" Akira waved, but all she could think about was Itachi the entire way back. As she neared her doorstep, she made up her mind.

_I'll just ask him casually,_ she decided.  _If I act like that shower scene slip up never happened, maybe he'll forget all about it!_ She knew it sounded naïve, but, at this point, she didn't really care. All she needed was an excuse, but first she had to find him.

"Itachi!" Akira called. She was back inside now and nearing her bedroom.

No response.

_Maybe he's out training._

Opening the door to her bedroom, Akira walked inside, glancing out one more time to ensure there were no signs of the Uchiha. By now, she gave up trying to sense his presence.

_I guess I'll make Kaname happy and change first,_  Akira thought defeatedly, sighing to herself as she tossed the shopping bags onto her bed.  _Now to find the one containing my kimono._


	6. Chapter 6

Itachi quietly slipped back into the house, his forehead glistening with sweat from training. He felt Akira's presence leave earlier with her friends but, after what happened, hadn't dared approach them.

Training had served as an effective distraction to avoid the inevitable for a time, but now he had to wake the sleeping demon. He could already hear Akira screaming at him, despite his vain attempts to tell her it was all a misunderstanding. Realistically, he would be lucky if she bothered to keep him long enough to continue researching the antidote.

Itachi continued until he reached the door to Akira's bedroom. Now all he needed to do was change clothes, bide his time by reading in the study and then wait for Akira to hunt him down with an eviction notice. The Uchiha sighed at his last thought. This was not at all how he had pictured himself leaving.

After Itachi slid the door open and walked inside, a flash of blue caught his darkening vision. It was Hyuuga Akira.

_Not good!_ Itachi mentally cursed his poor eyesight. He needed to up his training. Hadn't he already been careless enough today?

"Itachi?" He tore his eyes away from the Hyuuga girl, refusing to look at her for fear of what she may be wearing. All he had seen was a small glimpse of blue. If he walked in on her changing, he was a dead man.

On a different note, her voice sounded cheerier than expected. He refused to let his guard down on this tiny assumption, but, in the least, she didn't sound like she was about to throw him out, although, he could never be too sure with this girl. Her moods fluctuated more than the ocean waves during a hurricane.

"What are you looking at?"

Itachi's gaze darted back to the Hyuuga girl. Why wasn't she angry? Completely forgetting his original objective to not look at her no matter what, Itachi, quite the contrary, found himself staring.

For some reason, Akira was wearing a… kimono?

Her garment mainly consisted of a light blue silk similar to the color she usually wore. The hue gradually transitioned to a darker blue at bottom of her sleeves and the section near her feet. Small silver white Sakura blossoms intermingled and clumped where the colors transitioned but not enough to look crowded and a cluster of matching white flowers tied off the end of her usual braid.

His attention descended to the broad obi hugging her waist, which matched the darkest blue at the hem of Akira's sleeves while her obijime, on the contrary, was purple. Her feet were not-so-usually clad in tabi socks and kimono sandals. It was different, but not unpleasant in the slightest.

"Well…?" her voice trailed off expectantly. She whipped out a fan from her kimono sleeve, opening it to reveal white paper imprinted with a lovely floral design that also matched her outfit. Little did he know that fan was one of many little accessories Kaname insisted the Hyuuga girl purchase.

Bringing his eyes back up to her face, Itachi found his voice. "Why are you wearing a kimono?"

Her shy smile instantly contorted into an angry scowl. Wrong answer, apparently. Now, Akira looked about to yell. Itachi braced himself for impact, but nothing happened. Locking eye contact with the girl, Itachi found no hint of irritation left in those lavender orbs.

"There's a festival in town," Akira explained, her tone surprisingly mellow. She laughed nervously at her next sentence. "Kaname, well… she persuaded me to get a kimono while we were out."

"I take it you're returning to the festival then?"

She nodded, her expression transitioning back to shy as she tapped her index fingers together, only confusing him all the more.

"Itachi," she began, "I was wondering…"

"Hn?"

"Would you like to come to the festival with me?"

Itachi blinked several times, momentarily questioning his sanity. Had he heard her correctly?

She misinterpreted his emotions as uninterested. "Y-you don't have to go if you don't want to, you know," she stuttered, her cheeks burning redder than his sharingan. "I'm fine with going by myself."

"No, I…" Itachi found himself trailing off. What was wrong with him? He didn't have a speech impediment. "If you're all right with it, I would not mind accompanying you."

"Good then!" Her face spread into a broad grin. "Whenever you're ready, then."

"I would like to change first. I was training."

"Okay!" The Hyuuga girl scurried to the door. "I'll be in the dining room!" The sliding door slammed shut. Itachi could still hear Akira's footsteps as she headed to her destination.

The Uchiha's thoughts were in a jumble as he procured a new set of clothing. Only one coherent phrase strung together in his head.

_What the hell just happened?_

_-_

Akira exhaled deeply, snapping her fan shut and clutching it in her palm in an attempt to regain her composure. Her cheeks flamed red.

_That was harder than I thought._

She didn't like admitting it, but she wasn't completely over the incident from this afternoon. Every time she saw him, she couldn't help but remember it. Akira sighed in defeat. How was she supposed to make it through an hour with this guy, let alone an entire evening?

_At least Kaname and Eri will be there. That should make tonight bearable._

"Akira?" The kunoichi jumped.

"Done already?" Somehow, she kept an even tone upon speaking.

"Hn." The expression he gave her unnerved her a bit. Upon closer inspection, she detected traces of confusion in his eyes, and with Itachi she practically had to use her byakugan to see that much.

They walked the entire way downtown in silence. Itachi saw no point in idle conversation, and Akira simply didn't know what to say. Awkward could only begin to describe the situation. When they arrived, the town still bustled with excitement, and colorful lights illuminated the evening sky in the place of the sun.

"So… where should I show you first?" Akira mused, unconsciously reaching for the Uchiha's hand. Looking surprised, he attempted to pull away when she locked their fingers.

"What was that for?" Akira demanded, frowning but refusing to let go.

"I could ask you the same question."

"I can't have you getting lost."

He gave her one of his infamous looks.

"Besides, it's only until we find Kaname and Eri," she finished, her voice transitioning to a murmur.

-

Itachi still questioned his decision to let her do as she pleased. He didn't mind the over-crowded streets or even the fact he could barely see half the things she pointed to. Rather, it was her dragging him around hand-in-hand like a small child that irked him. Although she attempted to be considerate, her methods remained questionable. He didn't like physical contact to begin with, and, although he couldn't think of one, there had to be a better way to do this.

But, despite the discomfort, he did nothing.

She jabbered on and on about this and that, continuing to lug him around like a piece of luggage as she explained the sights and sounds of her village. It was nostalgic in an odd, messed up sort of way. Now that he thought about it, this village did remind him of a miniature version of Konoha.

Catching himself there, Itachi dismissed all thoughts concerning his former home. The last thing he needed to be was homesick for Konoha. He left that village a long time ago, and although he hadn't desired to leave in the first place, he could never go back. The best he could do was work toward Sasuke's best interest so his brother could return there.

Half an hour later, she finished giving him the grand tour. By now, Itachi actually felt somewhat comfortable in the area. Now all she needed to do was let go of his hand…

"Akira? Uchiha-san?"

The duo spun around. Itachi recognized the speaker as Koizuki Eri, and, just like every other time they bumped into her, Itsumade Kaname stood beside her.

"We were wondering when we would locate you two!" Kaname chirped, grinning.

His wish was finally granted when the Hyuuga girl released his hand to properly greet her friends.

"You look great!" Akira exclaimed, returning the smile. Her eyes rested on Eri first. "That kimono suits you."

Trying not to squint, Itachi followed the Hyuuga girl's gaze to examine the dark-haired kunoichi. Like Akira, both she and Kaname were colorfully clad.

Eri's kimono was a rich purple with softball-sized yellow flowers on her arms, rare sections of her torso, and more commonly from the waist down. Her obi was the same red color he often saw her wear, and her obijime was a duller yellow than the flowers. Akira was right that it suited her, although she didn't look nearly as brilliant as the Hyuuga girl did.

Itachi turned his attention to Kaname before he could fully register his last thought. Her kimono was mainly a golden yellow with green stitched bamboo patterns. Her obi was a vivid orange color and her obijime the same green color as the leafy designs. Additionally, Kaname's hair was pulled back into a bun with a matching hairpin. The yellow outfit was a different color for her, but she didn't look bad, either.

"Have you two done any shopping yet?" Eri inquired softly.

"Nope. I was just showing Itachi around," Akira replied, sounding as if she had completely forgotten he was there. He couldn't complain. Fading into the background had always been his preference.

The three girls rambled for what felt like an eternity. Why they enjoyed discussing such pointless things was beyond him, but, just in time, Eri came to his rescue.

"Kaname?" the shy girl cut in, drawing all attention to herself. She faltered for a second, but soon overcame it. "I just remembered something we have to do!" She smiled again. "Sorry, Akira."

Itachi breathed a mental sigh of relief, but it was short lived. There was a scheming edge to Eri's voice. Judging by Akira's expression, she realized it, as well, but too late. Kaname briefly looked confused, but, after exchanging a quick smirk with Eri, she also broke out into a broad grin.

"Oh, yeah," she exclaimed, palming her forehead in a way that made her excuse look incredibly fake. "I can't believe I forgot. Thanks, Eri!"

_They planned this, didn't they?_  Itachi resisted the urge to sigh. At times like this, he almost missed the chaos of Akatsuki.

"See you later, Akira! Have fun with Itachi!" Kaname called, she and Eri running away before the Hyuuga girl could fully react.

"Wait! Don't…" Akira trailed off, her fingers outstretched. She slowly withdrew her hand, knowing it was pointless.

"I can't believe they just did that…"

Itachi couldn't help but agree.

"We didn't even get to go shopping."

Although he was somewhat thankful for that detail.

_I suppose everything has its advantages._

"So…" Akira turned back to him with a weary look on her face. "What now?"

"I suppose we could return early, given the situation."

"Hell no!" she interjected, surprising him. "I didn't get all dressed up for nothing! Do you have any idea how long it takes to put one of these things on? Besides, knowing those two, they're probably just going to a different section of the festival and hoping I won't find them!"

"Do as you please." Whatever she chose, it wasn't like he had much of a say, anyway.

"Let's make the best of it, then." Akira sighed again. "How does ramen sounds to you?"

Itachi paused, wondering if he heard her correctly. "Pardon?"

"Ramen." She frowned. "You  _do_  know what that is, right?"

"Of course. I would not be opposed to it, although I have no means in which to pay for it."

"Don't worry, I'll treat you," Akira assured, motioning to the kimono sleeve containing her wallet. "Just have fun, okay?"

The Uchiha did his best not to gawk. She was being so friendly he momentarily considered finding a nice quiet area and interrogating her where the real Akira was.

Minutes later, she'd dragged him to a nearby ramen stand (and had thankfully refrained from doing so literally this time). The alluring aroma of fresh food beckoned them in.

"Welcome!" A short, slightly plump old lady with pulled back gray hair greeted them. She was dressed in chef attire and stood behind a counter with numerous stools positioned in front of it.

After a brief look around, Itachi found this place also reminded him of Konoha. The layout was eerily similar to Ichiraku's ramen stand. It brought back memories—memories he was trying very hard to forget.

"Two chicken ramen, please!" Akira called. The old woman smiled warmly at her.

"About time you brought in a guy with you." She winked, making Itachi feel extremely uncomfortable.

Akira's face mirrored his emotions. She blushed for the millionth time that day.

"I-it's not like that, Fuu. He's just a friend," she stuttered. Fuu cackled at her red cheeks.

_Friend?_  It was certainly an improvement from some of the other things she called him, but her words, nonetheless, surprised him. She actually considered him a friend now?

"Like I'd believe that," Fuu declared, preparing their order as she spoke. She turned her attention to Itachi. "I don't recognize you. Do you live in this village?"

"No."

"Oh? A foreigner, eh?" Her toothless grin didn't make him feel any safer. "Nice going, Akira. He's quite a looker."

"Kaname, Eri, and I stop by here sometimes after training," Akira explained, noticing his lost look. "The food here is really good."

"Hn." Seconds after his reply, two steaming bowls of ramen were thrust in front of them.

"Enjoy! It's not every day I get to serve a couple on a date!" The elderly chef still smiled. Her eyes glinted mischievously.

"Curse you, Eri, Kaname," Akira muttered, breaking apart her chopsticks. "Itadikimasu!"

Minus the grumbling, Itachi copied her movements.

The savory flavor of ramen coated Itachi's taste buds as he sampled the noodles. And, against his will, the familiar taste conquered his resolve to forget.

_"Nii-san! Let's go for ramen!" a seven-year-old Sasuke called to the reluctant older brother trailing behind him. So reluctant, in fact, that Sasuke had to grab the preteen's arm and pull him just to keep up. "Come on! I'm hungry!"_

_"Are you sure you want ramen, Sasuke?"_

_They had just finished training, and, through some miracle, the brothers came out injury free. Itachi wasn't the slightest bit concerned about himself, but his younger sibling's habit of ignoring his limits and hurting himself concerned him. Not to mention, his mother's wrath when she found out was not a force to be reckoned with._

_"Yep!" Sasuke grinned. He continued his childish rambling. "Let's go to Ichiraku's! The food there is so good, and Ayame-san is so nice! I hope she's there!"_

_Itachi let out a defeated sigh. "Just don't eat too much."_

_The younger Uchiha dragged him all the way to their destination. Through some miracle, the stand was vacant of other customers._

_"Welcome!" a female voice called to them. The brothers turned to see Ayame and old man Ichiraku standing behind the counter._

_"Sasuke?" Ayame turned her full attention to the eight-year-old. She didn't bother acknowledging Itachi's presence. "It's been a while."_

_Sasuke immediately forgot his brother was even there. Itachi wasn't complaining, though. His little brother tended to be the center of attention wherever they went._

_Itachi briefly thought back to their father._

_Except where Sasuke wanted it most._

_"One chicken ramen please," Itachi requested. Ichiraku nodded in reply. Save for tomatoes, ramen was one of Sasuke's favorite foods. The only time this tended to change was when Naruto was around. Even at such a young age, those boys were already competing over anything and everything, which also meant refusing to admit they had anything in common._

_"Eh? Nii-san? You're not eating?"_

_"I'm fine, Sasuke. If there's anything else you want, I'll gladly order it for you."_

_"Come on, Nii-san!" Sasuke pouted, an expression even their father had difficulty refusing. "You need to eat, too!"_

_Itachi was no exception. In the end, he ordered a bowl of ramen for himself, as well._

_"There you go. Now Nii-san won't go hungry!" Sasuke grinned._

_Itachi couldn't help but smile. It warmed his heart to see his brother so contented._

_"You seem to have grown a bit, Sasuke," Ayame remarked thoughtfully._

_"Really? Kaa-san said the same thing to me just yesterday!"_

_"Heh. Be careful, Itachi," Ichiraku warned. "Before you know it, this kid will be towering over you!"_

_"Hi, Ayame!" A new voice broke the mood before Itachi could reply. All eyes turned to see Umino Iruka entering the shop._

_"Iruka-san! Welcome!" Ayame smiled twice as broadly. The chuunin immediately diverted her attention away from the eight-year-old. But, thankfully, Ichiraku finished preparing Sasuke's meal just in the nick of time._

_"Enjoy!"_

_"Itadikimasu!"_

_Before Itachi could blink, Sasuke already gulped down his ramen like he hadn't eaten in days. Meanwhile, Itachi ate his with some composure._

_"You should slow down, Sasuke. I'm not carrying you home if you get a stomachache." He wasn't being entirely honest about the latter part, but Itachi knew if he offered, his brother may end up faking it. For some reason, Sasuke loved being carried home._

_"I won't get sick!" Sasuke snapped, bringing up the ceramic bowl to his lips to gulp down the liquid remains. He let out a hefty sigh once he was done, his hunger satiated. "Yummy!"_

_Itachi finished his meal slowly, Sasuke blabbering every second in the meantime. Even when Itachi paid their bill and stood up to leave, the younger Uchiha still rambled on and on._

_"Come again!" Ayame called after them._

_Itachi didn't reply. Knowing Sasuke, they definitely would be._

_"That was so good…" Sasuke said, drunkenly capturing his brother's arm in a way that screamed exhaustion. After a full day of training and with his belly now full, Sasuke was sleepy._

_Itachi mentally sighed at what he was about to do. Why could he never refuse this kid when he knew he should?_

_"If you'd like, Sasuke, I could carry you."_

_"Eh?" His brother's weary face lit up with joy. "Really?"_

_Itachi managed a brief nod before Sasuke yanked him aside and Itachi knelt down, enabling Sasuke to climb onto his back._

_Tiny arms gripped the preteen's surprisingly muscular neck in a warm embrace. Sasuke buried his face in his brother's back, gripping his own wrist while Itachi secured a hold on his brother's legs. Sasuke fell asleep almost instantly. In a half-conscious stupor, one phrase escaped the younger Uchiha's lips._

_"Love you, Nii-san…"_

_Itachi smiled softly as he continued walking. A part of him envied Sasuke's ability to slumber and laugh like he didn't have a care in the world. But even so, it was truly refreshing just to spend time with him._

Itachi tried not to cringe as his mind transitioned back to reality. He cherished the memory, but that was a long time ago. Back when everyone had still been alive, and back when Itachi could still bring himself to smile.

Back before he destroyed Sasuke's life.

"Itachi?" A familiar voice interrupted his thoughts. The Uchiha turned to see a confused Akira staring at him.

"Are you okay? You looked like you spaced off for a second."

Readjusting his grip on the chopsticks, Itachi uttered a brief, "Hn," and resumed eating. It was odd really. He had already mentioned that the setting was similar, and the even flavor of ramen was the same as that memory. It he wasn't careful he might end up—

"Itachi! You're spacing off again!"

He held in a sigh.

_I suppose that's what Akira is here for._

"Hm." Itachi noticed Fuu eying him again. "Are you sure he's not your boyfriend, Akira?"

Akira scowled in irritation. "Yes!"

Itachi and Akira ate in silence until both of them were done. The Hyuuga girl offered a few parting words and their bill to the presumptive woman behind the counter, and, without further hesitation, she seized Itachi's wrist to pull him out of the shop.

The elderly ramen lady slowly put away the money Akira gave her. Her gaze didn't leave the duo until they were well out of sight.

Fuu smirked. "They are  _so_ a couple."

"Itachi! Don't walk so fast!"

The Uchiha paid her no attention as she attempted to keep up with his brusque strides. But, in the process, she nearly tripped, which caused her hold to transition from merely his hand to his entire arm. Much to his dismay, Hyuuga girl didn't bother returning to her former position.

"Wait a minute! There's something I want to get!" she exclaimed exasperatedly, thrusting her pointing finger behind them.

"Hn?" Itachi followed her gaze to one of the many stands lining the street. A cart decorated with numerous brightly painted porcelain masks caught his eye.

He promptly noted of the absence of Akira's presence beside him. Glancing back to the mask stand, Itachi relocated the Hyuuga girl in mid-conversation with the clerk there.

_So that's what she wanted._

Making sure he was out of everyone's way, Itachi quietly waited for her to return, which she did less than a minute later with a crinkled brown paper bag in her arms. He tried to ignore the annoyed look she gave him.

"What?"

"Nothing, just hold still," she replied, and, after deciding not to catch her hand, Itachi felt a small weight being attached to the side of his head by a thin red string.

Once the object was tied on, the Uchiha brought up his fingers to feel what it was.

"That mask looks good on you!" Akira grinned, stepping back to survey her handiwork.

Itachi was not impressed. He tried not to frown during his next sentence.

"Why do you feel this necessary?"

Too late. She frowned for him.

"Well, here I am all dressed up when you're in casual clothes. Besides, I thought you should get at least something from this festival. Do you not like it?"

Although Itachi couldn't see the mask given its current positioning, he had gotten a glimpse when Akira purchased it. If his memory served, which it always did, the mask was white and in the shape of a cat's face. The details of the nose and mouth were painted in black and a few other designs along the edges and below the eyes were painted in red.

Now that he thought about it, the object greatly resembled an ANBU mask.

"I appreciate your thoughtfulness."

She didn't pay attention long enough to hear his thank you. Three seconds later, Itachi was dragged toward her next destination: festival games.

Her current activity was a game Itachi recognized. It involved a paper net, a tank full of water, and many tiny goldfish occupying said water. The goal: catch the goldfish without breaking the paper net.

"Tch. Dammit!" Akira growled under her breath. Her net had broken again. And that was what, her fourth one? She was certainly determined—either that, or she just didn't know when to give up.

Before Itachi could stop himself, he opened his mouth to speak.

"You're doing it all wrong."

"Hm?" Akira glared in return. Why she saw the need to vent her frustration on him eluded him, but…

"You're practically stabbing the water. With a paper net, you need to be gentler."

"Like this?" She attempted a less abrasive motion. The net still broke.

"You were too slow."

The Uchiha stepped in behind her and smoothly placed his hand over hers to walk her through the steps, as if he were her mentor. But, despite being a good three inches away from her neck, he could feel heat radiating from the area.

_Hm…_  Perhaps he had been a bit hasty with his movement, but there was no going back now. Besides, this Hyuuga girl blushed far too easily. Not his problem.

"Not too hard," he began, guiding her net into the water, "and not too slow."

With a small flick of their wrists, the net reappeared, a flopping fish on its intact surface.

Her face lit up with joy. "I got one!" Akira exclaimed.

Itachi quickly withdrew his hand from her skin and backed away half a step. Had he waited any longer, her elated mood would be long gone and raw embarrassment in its stead. Thankfully, she hadn't taken the time to dwell on his actions and then, more than likely, mistranslate them.

_She's angry enough with me as it is._

"Yosh! One more!"

Carefully imitating his movement, Akira plunged the net back under the surface while the stand attendant placed her first fish in a small water-filled plastic bag.

She emerged successfully, and, with a jovial grin on her face, she whipped around to flaunt her prize.

"I did it!" Why she felt the need to show him, Itachi had no idea. "Thanks, Itachi!"

"Hn." Women: confusing, indeed.

Prize in hand and with her other gripping his arm, the Hyuuga girl only managed to walk a few steps before something else—or rather someone else—caught her attention.

"Oi! Miss, wait a minute!"

A crazy photographer with lousy taste.

"Excuse me, Miss," the photographer began. Looking rather short for his age, which seemed to be in the mid-thirties, the man had short brown messily spiked hair and brown eyes. His clothes consisted of a faded white t-shirt and a tattered pair of jeans. Not at all professional-looking, but apparently he had something to say to them.

"Would you mind letting me take your picture?" the photographer finished.

"Eh?" Akira blinked in confusion. She didn't realize her arm was still linked with Itachi's.

"I couldn't help but notice how beautiful you looked tonight," he continued, doing his best to pile on the charm to make up for his muddled appearance, "so I was hoping you would allow me to photograph you."

"I'm not so sure I'm entirely comfortable with someone I don't know having a picture of me," Akira admitted, pinching her index fingers together and looking a lot shyer than Itachi expected. In the least, she finally released his arm.

"Oh no, it's not like that," he assured before pointing to his camera. "This baby automatically spits out photographs right after I take them. It's not for me, it's for you. I was hoping you'd want a memento of this night. And for just a bit more, depending on your budget, I can give you a frame to go with it."

"Hm…" Akira spared a glance at Itachi, who gave her a complaisant stare in return. "Would it cost extra to have him in with me?" she inquired, pointing at the Uchiha.

Surprised could not even begin to describe how Itachi felt at that moment.

"Not to worry, all photographs cost the same," he assured. "The amount of people in them doesn't matter. It's the quality of the picture that counts."

Akira gave him a disapproving look.

"I promise I won't overcharge you if it turns out well, if that's what you're thinking," he added. The messy brown-haired man cleared his throat. "So, what do you say?"

"I wouldn't mind," she agreed. "Itachi?"

Rather than allowing his face to betray his true emotions, he replied with a simple, "Hn."

"Terrific!" the cameraman grinned, raising his device. "Now to find a background…"

Just a few yards away, Akira located a certain part of the festival that had just the right view of all the lights, stands, and people walking by.

"All right, Miss. Just a little to the left." He motioned with his hand. In reply, Akira re-linked her arm with Itachi's to move him with her.

Grinning like a complete fool, Akira squeezed his arm as she held up her aquatic duo of a trophy. Somehow, their photographer managed to position Itachi in a way that displayed the "ANBU" mask tied to the side of his head without completely obscuring his face. Quite an impressive feat, if Itachi did say so himself, although the man failed miserably in all his attempts to make Itachi smile.

As the blinding flash went off, through some miracle, neither of them blinked. Akira squealed in satisfaction at the picture and immediately had their photographer frame it without asking the price. In the end, the amount paid turned out reasonably, although Itachi still felt somewhat jipped. He had no room to complain, though, as it was Akira's money.

"That was great!" Akira exclaimed, still on the look out for things she wanted to buy. Their newly purchased photograph was safely tucked away in a plastic bag clutched in Akira's left hand while her right held the fish. Itachi's arms were completely free. "Now let's see…"

For once, their eyes stopped on the same stand. The sign: fresh dango.

"I haven't had dango in a while," Akira remarked, sparing a glance at the Uchiha. He, too, was staring with want in his gaze. Luckily for him, she could detect it.

"Excuse me," Akira began, waltzing up to the stand.

She left with a box of the most dango they would sell her in one batch. For once, Itachi favored her decision. Maybe she would let him have a few later on.

The Uchiha gave himself a mental slap at that thought.

Then again, he was already confused enough at how kind she was being. He shouldn't push his luck.

_But the dango…_

They wandered around a few more stores. Akira would buy this and that, and, when asked his opinion, Itachi would give a brief nod or shake of his head, utter an occasional "Hn" and have an otherwise sealed mouth.

Before Itachi knew it and soon than he expected, Akira was ready to head back. By then, it had been late evening for quite some time, and everything around them darkened as some of the stands closed.

"Come on, let's go home!" she called, once again, finding the strength to grab his wrist and keep a hold of everything she already carried. Oddly enough save for his "ANBU" mask, the Uchiha still held nothing. "Hurry!"

Their gait transitioned to a run. Why was she in such a hurry?

Deciding it best not to ask, Itachi followed.

The most careful thing he saw the Hyuuga girl do was place her prize fish on her dresser before chucking her other purchases onto her bed, which  _he_  slept on. Itachi patiently waited at the doorway until she finished. One thing he did approve, though, was her bringing the box of dango with them.

"Come on, we need to get outside!" Akira exclaimed, not grabbing his wrist, but instead shooting him the "Follow me or die" stare. Against his better judgment, the Uchiha obeyed and followed her through the living room and out the front door.

"It's a shame Kaname and Eri can't be here for this, but I guess that's what they get for ditching me!" Akira grinned. Itachi raised an eyebrow.

"Here for what exactly?" he questioned.

"You'll see." Akira pivoted her stance so that she was facing the… wall? Before he had time to ask, the Hyuuga girl charged full speed ahead and ran up the wall until she reached the roof, the box of dango still safely in hand and intact.

"You coming?" Her voice snapped Itachi out of his trance. Without any verbal protests, he complied.

But, before he could sit down next to the Hyuuga girl, a shrill screech followed by an even louder pop caught his attention. He slowly turned around to see a bright array of colors illuminating the sky.

"During other hanabi festivals," Akira began, "Kaname and Eri always used to say my house has the best view."

_So that's what she meant._  Itachi berated himself for not realizing it sooner. And here he liked to call himself a genius.

After a gentle tug on his sleeve, Itachi grudgingly joined the Hyuuga girl sitting on the roof. It all became worth it when she cracked open the box of dango she brought with her.

"Have as many as you like," Akira said, setting down the open box in the small space between them. She grabbed a stick of the steaming treat and happily shoved it in her mouth. Still grinning like a fool, Akira placed the empty stick on the attached open lid of the box before reaching for another one.

Making sure not to look too eager, Itachi did the same. Oddly enough, just as the inviting taste of dango filled his mouth, another round of fireworks filled the sky.

"So pretty!" Akira's eyes shone with delight. Half-smiling to himself and figuring she wouldn't notice due to the distraction, Itachi reached for another dango.

"I never would have imagined you as someone who liked sweets," Akira remarked.

Swallowing what was in his mouth, Itachi calmly placed the inedible remainder of his treat on the pile with the others. He allowed a good silence to build before replying.

"I suppose things aren't always what they seem to be."

"I suppose…" Her fingers brushed against his when they simultaneously reached for another of dango. Akira allowed him first dibs, bring to mind a question he had be wanting to ask all day. Hopefully, she wouldn't get nasty again at his words.

"Why are you being so kind to me?"

She looked caught off guard.

"Especially after this afternoon. Why aren't you angry? It's not like you after something like that."

"Well…" she trailed off, her eyes returning to the sky to avoid meeting his gaze.”I suppose I have no reason to be."

_What the…?_

Akira consumed two more dango before continuing. "Well, I know it wasn't on purpose."

"And how would you know that?" Although it wasn't the smartest thing to do, Itachi questioned her. He wanted—no,  _needed_ —to know why. What did she want?

Then, much to his surprise, she laughed. She. Freaking. Laughed!

"The look on your face, silly!" Akira giggled, pressing a hand to her mouth in an attempt to suppress it. "No pervert I've ever heard of would tell me to get off them like you did."

Itachi felt his face heat up as if he had a mild fever. Worse yet, he couldn't think of a proper reply.

"You're not that type of guy. Even a girl like me can tell."

"But I embarrassed you in front of your friends."

"True, but that's Kaname and Eri. They'll understand if I explain." She paused. "Now if it had been Saito or Misaki…"

"Then we would have a problem on our hands," he finished with a smirk. "Correct?"

She smiled in return. "Good to know you catch on quickly."

The dango continued to disappear as they watched the fireworks. Only three sticks were left.

"You know, Itachi," Akira began, picking up one of the three.

"Hn?" Had Itachi realized only two dango remained, he would not have picked one up as well.

"Thank you… for, well…" The red on her cheeks seemed to hinder her speech. "Thank you for spending tonight with me. I know it wasn't high on your priority list."

"It would have been cruel to leave after your friends abandoned you." Not that he was one to criticize when it came to being cruel.

"And you know perfectly well why they did that," she muttered.

For humor's sake, he asked, "What was that?"

"Nothing!"

Awkward silence reined once again, periodically interrupted with loud booms of fireworks. Long broken tendrils of every color imaginable reached across the sky, crackling and sizzling. When stared at for long enough, the tendrils curved slightly within the span of a few seconds, coming to resemble brightly colored flowers blooming in a dark field of smooth obsidian midnight and leaving trails of wispy gray smoke in their wake.

Mesmerized with the view, both parties simultaneously reached for more dango. The  _last_  dango.

Their fingers brushed again, only this time, neither one pulled away. To be honest, Itachi wasn't entirely sure why. All he knew was that if Akira didn't recoil her hand, then neither would he.

"Itachi…" His name escaped her lips as their touch eventually brought the two of them to look at each other, both curious as to why the other hadn't pulled away. Itachi found Akira's cheeks to still be blooming with light traces of pink, a bit lighter than her usual red blush. Somehow, the look appealed to him.

_What am I thinking?_ Itachi wondered, staring into Akira's seemingly endless lavender orbs. He could almost see himself reflected in their pale pastel color. But, if he'd been looking closely, Itachi would be able to detect a slight trace of pink on his cheeks, as well.

"Akira…" His mouth moved without his consent. Then, also without his consent, Akira's fingers jumped from the gripping dango to resting upon his hand, just like when they had been walking together.

He gradually brought his gaze back up to the girl's face.

"Go on…" Her tone was shy and demanding at the same time. It was kind of hard to explain, just like everything about this girl. She was a complete mystery, yet, at the same time, so easy to figure out. It was nothing less than confusing.

"I…" Dammit, he was trailing off again! Then again, what was he about to say? The Uchiha searched his head, but, no matter how hard he looked, he found no rational explanation for what he did.

"I…" During the chaos, Akira leaned in to hear him better. With her hand still gripping his, their faces were now inches apart. The tinge of pink on both their cheeks had long since transitioned to a fiery red. "I…" he trailed off for a third time.

_I don't know what to say._

Akira's eyes gradually drooped as she continued leaning. Her demeanor changed from the odd shy-demanding façade, to one of complete and utter relaxation. Painful as it was to admit, the look appealed to him. Come to think of it, he also felt a bit drowsy.

Slowly closing his eyes, Itachi's body acted on its own. Unable to stop, he leaned forward, as well. The Uchiha didn't need his sight to know his location. All his other senses made up for it. He could feel Akira's breath, which smelled invitingly of dango, gently brushing the surface of his lips, almost making him want to lick them. He could practically taste it front the scent. And that sound… he had never heard Akira breathe so deeply, and yet…

He himself had never felt like this, either.

The sweet scent was overwhelming now. Not even an inch separated them. Blushes invisible to both of them burned with a vengeance on their faces, and although every instinct told Itachi to pull away, he wasn't entirely sure if he could do that.


	7. Chapter 7

“NII-SAN!”

Itachi’s eyes snapped open. His entire body froze in place, and the small distance between him and Akira ceased to lessen. Sensing something was wrong, Akira stopped and opened her eyes, too. She gave the Uchiha a painfully questioning look. Looking away, Itachi tried to make the retraction of his hand subtle but failed miserably.

“Itachi?” The blush on her cheeks vanished and the shyness in her tone replaced with confusion.

The sky was clear now. In their mutual moment of blindness, they had missed the grand finale. Now all that remained were tiny wisps of gray smoke.

Both their eyes wandered to the voice that had called out a few seconds earlier. It was a child no more than five years old walking hand-in-hand with his older teenage sibling on the path running beside Akira’s house.

“Nii-san!” the child’s voice said again, and he grinned like he didn’t have a care in the world. Even from their position on the rooftop, both Itachi and Akira could see the brothers clearly. It tore at Itachi’s heartstrings more than he could possibly describe. He couldn’t help but felt jealous of that pair. Skipping and laughing so contently…

It just wasn’t fair.

“That’s odd. I wonder if they’re lost,” Akira murmured thoughtfully.

Tearing his eyes away from the scene, Itachi smothered the emotions telling him not to and he brusquely rose to his feet. His actions only baffled Akira all the more while the brothers headed out of sight, oblivious of the predicament they caused.

“We should be getting inside,” Itachi said, taking a few steps before jumping off the roof and gracefully landing on the ground below. Not once did he look back, leaving Akira blank, empty and confused.

-

“What the hell?” The words escaped Akira’s lips before she could make sense of her thoughts.

What the hell had just happened? One second Itachi had miraculously turned into one of the nicest men she ever met, and the next he was back to acting like his usual cold-hearted self.

The Hyuuga girl’s palm tingled, still remembering Itachi's touch. She balled the fingers of that hand into a fist. Her eyes wandered down to the stick of dango they had been competing over earlier.

His mood had completely changed after hearing that boy call out to his brother, but what could that possibly have to do with anything?

“Dammit!”

Deeming the situation hopeless, Akira seized the last dango and shoved it into her mouth. She hardly even chewed as she forced the sticky treat down her throat. But, at the moment, even the sweet taste of dango failed to lighten the situation.

“Dammit,” she murmured this time, picking up the empty box before jumping down from the roof, as well. Her landing wasn’t nearly as graceful as Itachi’s, but was successful, nonetheless.

Lips pursed in frustration, Akira headed inside.

-

Itachi sighed to himself, currently hid away in the “safety” of Akira’s room.

That kunoichi would be popping in any minute now, so he knew to savor what little solitude he could get. The Uchiha irritably ran his fingers through his hair. His digits were hindered by a familiar porcelain sphere.

_Ah yes, the mask._

Carefully removing the object from his head, Itachi placed it on the other side of Akira’s goldfish (the poor things had been left there) before collapsing onto the Hyuuga girl’s now-void-of-shopping-bags bed.

When he first agreed to stay there, Akira had insisted he sleep on the only bed in the house for the sake of his recovery, while she agreed to take the couch in the study. It hadn’t exactly been the most gentlemanly thing to do, but he complied.

Admittedly, she dropped in often to change and sometimes snatch things she need. Not that it bothered him, but, at times like these, Itachi wished she possessed a house with a spare bedroom.

On a different note, he was still trying figure out what had happened tonight. One second, he couldn’t wait for it to end, and the next—the image of Akira’s blushing face leaning in toward his filled the Uchiha’s mind— _that_ had almost happened.

He should be thankful for that child. He had stopped Itachi from making a horrible mistake. But, at the same time, Itachi felt frustrated. For a second, he had actually found himself  _wanting_  to kiss Akira. He had no idea whether she felt the same or had just been caught up in the moment, but, at this point, he would never know.

Or never  _should_  know, anyway.

How many times did he have to tell himself that he didn’t have time to get side tracked? Sasuke was top his priority. He knew that. But then why…?

The Uchiha halted his train of thought there as he ran his fingers through his hair again.

He had probably been overwhelmed by all the memories of his past. It would make sense, since he hadn’t expected things to be so nostalgic. Either way, he needed to pull himself together. He didn’t have time to be messing around.

“Itachi?”

The bedroom door opened, and in walked his anticipated guest. Akira didn’t look angry, but, like many times he had said before, one could never tell with this girl.

“Are you in here to change?”

She nodded. “And to put away my things,” she added. “Are you going to bed after this?”

“Hn.” Judging by her facial expression, she took that as a yes.

“I’ll do my best to hurry then,” Akira assured, offering him a smile.

“Take your time. I’ll wait outside.”

Hopping off the bed, Itachi whooshed past and closed the door behind him before she could say anything else.

Alone in the hallway, Itachi sighed for a second time. There they went again with acting like nothing happened.

-

Finally free from the restraints of her kimono, Akira exhaled in relief. Now in her version of pajamas, a light blue tank top and a pair of baggy black pants, she flopped onto what was formerly her bed in a giant heap.

_It feels good to lie here again._  That couch wasn’t doing any favors for her back, but she didn’t have much room to complain. Unlike Itachi, she didn’t have a poisoned, should-have-been-fatal injury on her abdomen that refused to heal. And speaking of Itachi…

The memory of them nearly kissing on the rooftop flashed through her head. Curling up into a ball, Akira clutched both hands to her temples in an attempt to blot out the image.

_Why am I thinking about that at a time like this?_  It bothered her, the way he’d just frozen. It didn’t make any sense to her.

_“NII-SAN!”_

The word stuck in her head like glue to a piece of wallpaper. She couldn’t shake the feeling that the little boy walking past them had something to do with Itachi’s strange behavior, but what?

Akira sighed in defeat.

_Itachi, why do you have to be so confusing?_  Why couldn’t he have picked some other healer to go confound?

Pushing the topic aside, Akira turned her attention to the unfortunate fish, who had been floating in that plastic bag for quite some time now.

She smiled wryly. “I guess I should let you two out now, huh?” Everything else could wait to be put away. She knew to attend to the living first, anyway. Knowing what she had to do, Akira hesitantly turned her attention to her closet and cringed. It had been a long time since she cleaned up in there.

_I should still have that, though._

_-_

A loud  _crash_  rang through the air, startling the Uchiha. It undeniably came from Akira’s room.

_Maybe she fell?_ Possibly, but then wouldn’t she have at least cried out? Besides, that hadn’t sounded like a body hitting the floor. Itachi knew that sound only too well.

Throwing caution into the wind, Itachi ignored the chance that she may still be changing and flung open the door. However, what he found was quite a different story.

Much to his relief, she had long since finished changing. Instead, a much more peculiar task occupied the Hyuuga girl’s attention. Currently on her hands and knees, the entire upper half of Akira’s body was concealed as she leaned into the abyss of her opened closet. Judging by the dust-covered discarded objects and several articles of clothing surrounding her, she was looking for something.

“What are you doing?”

His voice broke her concentration bubble. After blinking a few times, Akira glanced back at him, but quickly returned her attention to whatever she was doing.

“Looking,” she replied, her voice muffled by the walls of the closet.

Itachi held back a sigh. “For what exactly?”

“Ah-ha!” Her cry cut him short. Still on her knees, Akira stumbled back a few yards before holding up her find for him to see. It was a clear circular fish bowl.

“Those two need something to live in. I can’t just leave them in the plastic bag,” she reasoned, brushing off the dust from the bowl with a random cloth.

“Don’t mind me asking, but why do you have a fish bowl?”

Akira shrugged. “Not a clue. I just remembered that I had it. I have no idea where I bought it. Anyway!” Triumphantly pointing her finger at her destination, Akira charged back into the closet for one more thing. She yanked out a half pound bag of what looked like mini blue-colored pebbles.

“I think I had or was planning to get a fish at one point, but either it died or I just never got around to it,” Akira guessed, shrugging again. She opened the bag and poured a few of the mini pebbles into the bottom of the fish bowl before heading toward the bathroom to fill the container with water from the sink. “I should probably get fish food when I’m out at the store tomorrow,” Akira rambled as if she were talking to herself.

He observed mutely as she untied the plastic bag containing the fish and delicately plopped the creatures into their new home. A smile graced her lips, brightening the Hyuuga girl’s eyes. Itachi felt the heat from earlier light up his face again.

Mentally palming his forehead and praying she wouldn’t notice, Itachi sidestepped as she picked up the fishbowl and spun around to leave the room.

“Sleep well, Itachi,” she called over her shoulder, and, without another word, she kicked the door shut with a muffled  _shuuup_.

He was alone again.

-

Walking a few more steps, Akira finally surrendered to her emotions and leaned her back against the nearest wall.

She still didn’t have any idea what had gone on tonight, and she had been too embarrassed to ask. It was murder enough just to stand in the same room as him without losing her composure.

Sliding down to the floor and setting down the fishbowl as she did so, her hands found their way back to her temples and gripped them tightly, mussing up her loose hair in the process. That memory kept reappearing no matter how much she tried to repress it. The harder she tried to make it leave, the harder it came back.

There was no way she could sleep on this. She needed to distract herself. Better yet, she knew just the thing to do it.

Readjusting her grip on the fishbowl, the Hyuuga girl rose back to her feet and ventured to the study across the hall. Then, after setting down the water-filled container on a small wooden table between the right side of the couch and the bookcase, Akira grabbed her notes and a few research books and headed out to the dining room.

It wouldn’t hurt to work on that cure for a little while. Besides, all Itachi wanted to do was leave, so she may as well do what she could to make that wish a realty. Akira tried to ignore the pang in her gut at the thought of him going and rather gritted her teeth. Why was she even bothering to care?

Placing down her books and papers on the smooth wooden table, the Hyuuga girl cracked open the first book to the place she left off yesterday and, pencil in hand, began reviewing her notes. Before Akira knew it, her mind completely focused on finding that cure.

“All right, let’s see…”

She was painstakingly close to testing another potential antidote. This task was taking her an obnoxiously long time, but for good reason. Since she had literally no background on the nature of the poison save for its country of origin (Amegakure), she had no choice but to do things the hard way.

She had to identify every component in the poison and then find its neutralizer. Once she found a match for what she believed was every element, she would test her find out on the seal. If it worked, which it hadn’t yet, she’d done everything properly. If it didn’t, it meant that she had either missed an element or one of the neutralizers had been ineffective. To put it simply, she was back at square one.

Now, here she was, working on her latest one. She only had a few more elements to identity, which brought up another reason why this was taking so long: obtaining the ingredients needed to neutralize the poison.

Akira anxiously flipped another page in the book she skimmed.

_Come on, just this one!_  The Hyuuga girl gripped her pencil, a bead of sweat sliding down her brow.  _Here it is._ This was the ingredient she needed to neutralize the last element.

Slamming the book shut, Akira scribbled something down before snatching up her notes and tiptoeing her way to the kitchen.

_I think I put it in here._  Cracking open the "don't touch when cooking" section of her kitchen pantry, Akira found her guess to be spot on. She couldn’t resist a smirk as she reached for the container containing the plant she needed. Without Kaede-sensei’s generous donations, none of this would be possible.

Two grueling hours later, Akira finished her new antidote. She had used up a good chunk of her supplies on this one, and, although she had a good feeling about it, she knew not to get her hopes up. After all, it was a one in a million chance that this would actually work.

Akira slowly unrolled the seal and carefully picked up the dropped she procured from another drawer in her kitchen.

“Here goes nothing,” she murmured, suctioning a few drops from the brew she concocted. The dropper dangled menacingly over the seal and, for a moment, her hand froze in place.

_This had better work._  She’d have to go back to Kaede-sensei and beg for more ingredients if it didn’t, but that wasn’t fully the issue. Somehow, Akira regained control of her fingers. She squeezed the dropper, and the antidote seemed to fall in slow motion toward the parchment.

A soft sizzling rang out. The sound continued and gradually the black ink used to draw the seal began to fade edges first. A final puff of smoke rose up and, when it cleared, the ink was completely gone.

The scroll was blank now. It had worked.


	8. Chapter 8

Kaname yawned, but politely concealed the gesture with her hand. The three of them were roughly midway on their journey to Kaede-sensei's, all with a weary trudge to their steps.

Eri smiled softly at her tired friend. "Didn't get enough sleep?"

Kaname nodded blankly. "Stayed up too late."

"At the  _festival_ , I presume," Akira muttered bitterly.

"No, of course not!" The dark circles under Kaname's eyes screamed the opposite. "We were doing what we forgot to do yesterday, right, Eri?"

The dark-haired kunoichi ignored her pathetic excuse. "How did things go with Uchiha-san?"

A certain memory involving dango, her rooftop and nearly giving away her first kiss flashed through Akira's head. Even in her sleep, she hadn't been freed from the recollection of that moment.

Despite her efforts not to, Akira turned beet red. In protest, she balled her hands into fists. Kaname and Eri looked at her quizzically.

"So, what happened?" Eri repeated.

"N-nothing," she replied, stuttering somewhat. "We hung around the festival for a bit and then went back to my house to watch the fireworks."

_Sure you did._  A small voice in the back of her head scoffed.

"That's it?" Kaname sounded disappointed. She seemed to buy it, though.

"Yep."

_You won't even tell them that you finished the antidote Itachi needs, will you?_ The voice reappeared again.

"I hope you had fun," Eri chirped.

Akira forced her face into a smile. "I did."

_What about Itachi? Are you not going to tell him?_

She finally replied to the unknown entity once Kaname lost interest and began rambling about another topic.

_Of course I am. That's the only reason he's here._

_He'll leave once he gets it, right?_

_And what's wrong with that?_

The voice didn't reply for a few seconds. It actually made her a bit anxious.

_Do you really want that?_

She didn't answer, and the voice said nothing more.

She didn't know what to feel anymore. She couldn't deny that she wanted Itachi to stay longer, but that was selfish. He had his own life to get back to, and the same for her. She couldn't keep something like this between her and her friends forever. Besides, Misaki knew, so the whole village could be in on it by now.

Akira bit her lip.

What was the right thing to do?

-

The front door slid open and in walked Akira, messenger bag slung over her right shoulder and hanging by her side. A weary, slightly annoyed expression was etched on the Hyuuga girl's face.

"Dammit, Kaede-sensei, another essay?"

Her grumbling did the kunoichi little good, but it certainly made her feel better. She had to choose a medicinal herb from a list of given options and write about it—simple enough, but it required research, which took time.

"Which should I do?"

_Burdock root._  Well, that one stuck out in her mind. If memory served, she even had a sample of it. An accurate description would certainly help in writing the damn thing.

Akira paused and thoughtfully touched her chin.

But where had she put it?

-

Itachi inclined his head toward the sound he just heard.

"Ah, Akira's back."

He was in the study reading, as usual, but nothing felt usual to him at the moment. He supposed that it was the side effects of that…  _experience_  at the festival, but whether his fellow Akatsuki believed it or not, he did have emotions—even if he tried to smother them—and those emotions were never easy to deal with.

_I need to get over this._  Undoubtedly, but certainly easier said than done.

Flipping the page in the book he was reading, Itachi continued to focus his attention on the literature that he could barely read, anyway. Nothing detrimental would happen if he didn't greet her just this once.

A loud  _crash_  rang out less than a minute later, and it sounded like a body hitting the floor.

The Uchiha sighed and quickly closed his novel.

Then again, maybe not.

-

"Itai," Akira muttered, tentatively rubbing the back of her head. She could already feel a lump growing there.

"Everything all right?" The Hyuuga girl whipped her head toward the speaker. Uchiha Itachi stared down at her, his attempt at concern radiating as more of a glare.

"I'm fine, thanks," she retorted, pushing herself to her feet. In the process, she nearly tripped over the sideways stool she'd formerly been standing on. Her hand found its way to the back of her head again.

_Itai…_

"Mind explaining what you were doing on the floor?"

His tone of voice irked her for some reason. Akira resisted the sudden urge to punch him.

"In case you didn't notice, I was  _looking_ for something, and I fell."

It was true. She'd been searching for the small sample container of burdock root that she had somewhere. Since she often used herbs in cooking, she first looked in her kitchen cabinet, and specifically the top shelf, which required a stool for her to reach. Then, obviously enough, she'd fallen and now here she was.

"Did you find it?"

Akira allowed herself a frown. It was certainly a better idea than trying to punch him.

"Nope. Apparently, I put it somewhere else," she admitted. At this, Akira brushed her finger across her chin in a thinking pose.

_Now where else could I have put it…?_

Then it hit her. Apparently, that fall had been just what she needed to jog her memory.

"It's in my laundry room cabinet." Akira palmed her forehead. "Dammit! How could I forget?" That was where she stored the plants she didn't use as often.

Itachi just looked at her. She couldn't fully identify the emotion, but it was probably his version of, "What the hell?"

"I have to write an essay on a certain plant for Kaede-sensei, and I was looking for it," Akira explained. "Sorry for disturbing you."

"And it's in your laundry cabinet, you say?"

She nodded, slightly confused now.

"What's the plant called?"

"Burdock root. Why?"

"Stay here. I'll get it for you."

"What?" Akira almost pinched herself to ensure she wasn't dreaming. "You'll  _what_?"

Itachi gave her another Look. "Need I repeat myself?”

“It—um, no, I'm just…" she trailed off. “Surprised is all.”

"You hit your head, correct?"

_Oh yeah._  Why it took her this long to become aware of her splitting headache, Akira would never know. All she knew was that now, she had one.

"So?"

Itachi eyed at her as if she were the least intelligent person on earth.

"Heal yourself, kunoichi. I'll be right back."

He briskly walked away, and Akira was left feeling exactly how he'd looked at her: Stupid. Incompetent. Unreasonable. She tended to feel like that every time he referred to her as "kunoichi." It seemed to be his way of being short with her.

Akira blinked a few times, trying to fully comprehend the situation and brush away the emotions churning in her stomach. Still confused, Akira channeled her healing chakra into one of her hands and then proceeded to begin healing that lump on the back of her head.

Nothing was making sense with that Uchiha, anymore, and, to make matters worse, she still hadn't told him about the cure.

She clenched her fists and slammed the counter. "Dammit!"

_-_

_Let's see, Burdock root, Burdock root..._  He'd never heard of it before, but she probably had some variety of label that he could use to identify the container.

What had possessed him to do this uncharacteristic act of kindness Itachi would never know, but he was doing it more and more lately.

Itachi sighed. He couldn't afford to let his soft-heartedness keep showing, but, knowing Akira, if she hadn't figured it out by now, she probably never would. He could thank what little luck he had for that girl's density when it came to details.

He was in the laundry room now, and from what he could tell, the cabinet was right in front of him. His eyesight was deteriorating rapidly, but he knew his way around the house well enough to not be hindered. What he did worry about was when he had to return to Akatsuki.

Pushing that thought aside, Itachi opened the cabinet near the washing machine to begin his search for things resembling plant containers. As expected, he located them without a problem.

The real issue came when he pulled out one of the containers to check the label. He couldn't read the letters.

_Dammit._

Itachi slowly returned the container he picked to its original place. It took every ounce of willpower he had not to panic, and, rather, he swallowed hard.

_This shall be interesting._

_-_

Akira impatiently tapped her pencil on the table as she waited, glancing back every so often to see if Itachi had come back yet.

He was certainly taking his time. Had he fallen this time or something?

During the wait, she'd at least started the essay with her extensive supply of books, but she still wanted to have the actual plant in front of her for the finer details.

But, just before she lost all sense of patience and decency, a familiar raven head slowly made its way through her dining room doorway.

"About time."

Her impatience vanished when the Uchiha's face came back into view. He wordlessly handed her what had taken him nearly five minutes to procure. She took it from him, but her gaze never left his eyes.

Something was wrong. Akira had no idea what, but she could feel it. She momentarily looked away to read the label, and the Hyuuga girl slowly blinked, momentarily wondering if she were seeing things.

Her gut feeling of alarm only increased.

He'd brought her the wrong container. It was Bugleweed, not Burdock root. The first letters were the same, but still…

She quickly brought her attention back up to the Uchiha.

It wasn't like Itachi to make a mistake like this.

"Something wrong?"

"I…" Akira trailed off, her confidence suddenly vanishing. She regained it with a defiant stare. "You brought me the wrong one. This is Bugleweed not Burdock root."

She watched his expression carefully. A brief flash of emotion shone in his coal black eyes but vanished just as quickly. Akira had to bite her lip not to smirk.

Just as she thought. There was definitely something wrong.

"I must have grabbed the wrong one." Itachi retook the Bugleweed and disappeared in the blink of an eye

So she waited. He returned two minutes later.

"Here." He handed her the new container before she could stand to go after him. Akira quickly scanned it. She looked up at him questioningly from her sitting position.

Here came the fun part.

"Itachi, are you illiterate?"

He seemed taken aback. Not shocked, just mildly surprised. Nothing less than what she expected from him.

"I learned to read when I was three. Of course not," he replied coolly. "Why do you ask?"

She held up the container and looked at him as if to say, "Wrong one, genius."

He reached for what he'd brought her, but she abruptly pulled it out range. Itachi raised a dark eyebrow.

"Good. It's the right one." She smiled, but her eyes hardly showed it. She rose to her feet so that they were both standing. "Mind telling me what the hell is going on now?"

His expression: cool, composed, and aloof even. His eyes: that same fleeting sheen of emotion.

"Whatever are you talking about?"

"Don't act innocent, Itachi, you're not very good at it." Despite her words, his expression remained unchanging. It was impressive, really—not even a twitch.

"I repeat—"

"What the hell took you so long, and why does it seeming to me that you can't even read?"

His lips tightened. Finally, a reaction of some sort.

"I can read just fine."

Akira smiled again. That same fake smile she knew he could see right through. "All right, I believe you." Judging by his braced look, he knew this was far from over.

"Then what's wrong with you?"

He didn't reply.

_Looks like it's time for Plan B…_

"Itachi, don't make me start guessing. I'm a healer. Despite your amazing memory, you seem to forget that on a regular basis."

Still no reply. "All right then." Time to start guessing. "You can't see, can you?"

It was the best she could come up with. He could definitely read, she had no doubts about that, and he was far too well-educated to not be able to. Everything else pointed to lack of eyesight. That glassy look in his eyes, that frustrated expression he secretly wore when he thought she wasn't watching, and his tendency to not always be aware of his immediate physical surroundings—it would make so much sense.

But still, he said nothing. Akira resisted the urge to sigh.

_Men... Why did they feel the need to be so difficult?_

"Well, if you're going to be stubborn," Akira whipped out a small glass vial from her weapons pouch. A glass vial that she'd begun carrying as of yesterday. "Can you tell me what this is?"

He didn't squint, but it was evident to her that he was using all of his senses to identify everything about said object. It was nothing short of intriguing.

"Another antidote you've created," Itachi said simply. "Why do you ask,  _kunoichi_?"

"Not just any antidote,  _Itachi_ ," she corrected, finally allowing herself a smirk. "It's the actual cure. I've already tested it, and it works. The seal's been neutralized."

His lips tightened again—definitely a good sign that she was on the right track.

"I bet you already know what's going on, but I'll explain anyway, just in case your ears are just as impaired as your eyes seem to be."

Itachi said nothing, so she continued. "You want this? Start talking. I have no obligation to give it to you, and I'm willing to put up a fight if you try to take it by force."

Thankfully, he didn't seem like the type of man to resort to her last suggestion, but she could never be too sure. Unfortunately, Akira was painfully aware she didn't stand a chance against him in a real fight.

"I…" he trailed off. His expression was the closest thing to defeat she'd ever seen with him.

"You  _what_ , Itachi?"

"I'm not blind yet." His tone was short and abrasive. She couldn't blame him. He did currently have a woman scorning his much-treasured pride.

"'Yet?' Meaning you're getting there and you still retain some of your vision?"

A hesitant look flickered across the Uchiha's features. She patiently waited for him to speak, but, nonetheless, continued waving around the antidote like a first place trophy.

He settled for a curt nod.

"Do you know what's causing it?"

"Yes. Although there is nothing I can do."

Akira gave him a dubious look. "Really?" She didn't entirely believe him. It was just eyesight, right? "Have you checked this out with other healers?"

"Yes. Many, in fact, and none could do anything that lasted."

"Then what's causing it?"

He seemed even more hesitant to answer this question.

"An eye technique I use," he admitted. Vague, but it was more than enough.

The Hyuuga girl scoffed. "Easy. Stop using the eye technique."

"It's not so simple, Akira."

_At least he's back to calling me by my real name._

"Oh? And why is that?"

"The damage is already done. I'm going blind whether I stop using the technique or not. Besides, my occupation demands it."

Akira paused, allowing the information to sink in. She closed her eyes, exhaled deeply, and then reopened them.

"Okay…" This was more complicated than she'd thought. "What else do you know about this imminent blindness of yours?"

Itachi seemed more than ready to drop the topic. In fact, his fingers looked like they were itching to just snatch the antidote right from her hands. But, nonetheless, he answered her.

"Just that I can't stop it."

Akira repeated her relaxation technique of blinking, sighing and then reopening her eyes. Why did she even bother to care?

"You're not bleeding to death at the moment, are you?"

"No." He seemed a bit confused at her words.

"Good then. You won't die if I withhold this for a bit longer." Her smile was genuine this time. "I do believe I have proposition for you then."

"I'm listening." His voice was short again.

"I'll give you this," she held up the antidote, "that's a given."

"Then what?"

"I'm getting there!" Damn, this guy was more impatient than her at times. "If you'd be willing to elongate your stay for a bit longer, I, in turn, would be willing to see what I can do about that eyesight of yours."

"I already told you it's—"

"Incurable, I know," she cut off, glaring slightly. "But I'm willing to at least give it a try, but only if you're okay with it. If you'd like to leave," she tossed him the antidote and he caught it with ease, "go ahead. I'm just giving you an option. You don't have to take it."

"I can't just stay here without paying you anything. I've taken advantage of you enough." He sounded ashamed. She didn't like it in the slightest.

She frowned and planted a hand on her hip. "If I minded, I would tell you. We already agreed that you can pay me later."

Itachi's voice rose to a surprisingly loud dynamic as he snapped, " _I_ mind!"

Akira froze, her eyes widening slightly. Itachi had  _never_ —and she meant  _never_ —yelled at her like that. She wasn't angry or hurt even, just… surprised. They'd certainly bickered before, but this was the first truly heated argument she'd ever had with him.

Akira quickly swallowed before taking in a breath to speak. "Then train me."

"Hn?"

"Train me. You know how to fight, right? You kick my ass every time, and I can tell you're holding back. Teach me how to do that, and I'll consider it payment."

"Akira, that's—"

"What? Not good enough? It's what I want, isn't it? I want to get stronger, and, I don't know for sure, but I'd guess you want to see clearly again. I say it's a fair exchange."

Itachi said nothing. If anything, he looked like he couldn't think of a decent reply.

"How long will it take you?" he finally asked.

"As long as it needs to, and, to be honest, I don't know. I'll do what I can, but if there's nothing I can do, I'll say so, and you can be on your merry way." He didn't look terribly impressed with her answer, so she specified, "But if I can, I'd estimate about the same time it took me to figure out the cure, and, if we're lucky, maybe even less."

To prove her point, Akira thrust her hand in front of him, palm open and ready to shake. "Deal?"

Itachi paused. His desire was obvious, but something held him back. Akira resisted the urge to sigh.

Something _always_  held him back.

But, he surprised her. A second later, he clasped their hands and gave hers a gentle shake. Out of curiosity, Akira stole a glance at his other hand.

He still hadn't taken the antidote. Speechless, she stared in wonder as Itachi's mouth moved.

"Deal," he said softly.


	9. Chapter 9

"Haaa!" Akira yelled, rushing forward and, for the third time that day at the training grounds, attempted to hit Itachi with her jyuuken. The Uchiha smoothly side-stepped, and Akira barely managed to nick a strand of his hair.

Her target had been his left shoulder.

The Hyuuga girl growled in frustration. Itachi smirked at her, if one could even call it that. His expression was slight tug at the corner of his lips, and his eyes were definitely not happy enough to call it a smile. Without a doubt, he was just making fun of her.

"You telegraph your movements, and, in addition to that, you're incessantly slow."

Akira growled again. "Shut up!"

"You're the one that asked me to teach you. I am simply doing as you requested." That only irked her more.

Without turning around, the Uchiha retreated to the tree where they had placed their water bottles. He picked up hers and tossed it over before obtaining his own. Akira caught it with ease, despite how hard she was panting.

"Take a short break, kunoichi. You've earned it." Akira grinned and ran to join him. The duo sat down and, almost simultaneously, unscrewed their water bottle caps to take sips. It was her second day of training, and, by now (minus the eyesight), Itachi was injury-free. After he took the antidote, she healed him without a problem.

Now, she was working on curing his eyesight, which, although she hadn't quite had a chance to study yet, she was confident she could do. She planned to go home, take a shower, and then begin her research.

But, at the moment, Akira was having a wonderful lesson on how to endure uncensored criticism.

"You need a lot of work on your taijutsu."

Akira glowered, but said nothing.

"Your stances are average, but when you tire, you significantly slacken. Your speed is atrocious, but—"

"Anything I'm  _not_  doing wrong?" Akira cut off, her eyes narrowed.

"—we can work with that," Itachi finished. "Overall, you have your basics down. That's the most important part of taijutsu."

Akira sighed. At the rate she was going, she would be lucky to start brushing up on ninjutsu in a month.

"Anyway," Itachi continued, rising to his feet. "We have a long way to go."

_Tell me something I don't know._  Akira rolled her eyes.

"Ready to call it a day?" she inquired, twisting the cap back onto her water bottle.

"Hn. It would be best."

-

Itachi and Akira returned home within the span of a few minutes. Akira took her shower, Itachi waited, and then they switched. Soon afterwards, lunch was ready and subsequently devoured. Once the dishes were done, it was time to get to work, and Itachi was more than ready to begin.

"So how do you plan to go about this?" Itachi inquired.

"Easy." Akira held up a book entitled  _The Structure of the Human Eye._  "I compare the pictures of healthy eyes to yours, and then find what I need to fix. Then, based on where the problem is, I concoct a solution."

"Clever, admittedly, but how might I inquire do you plan to see my entire eye?"

Akira giggled, unnerving him a bit. "I'm a Hyuuga, remember? Haven't I told you about the byakugan?"

_Ah yes._  How did he forget that? Still, he'd never heard of a Hyuuga using their kekki genkai for medical purposes.

"Hn."

"But…"

"But  _what_?"

"There is one minor setback," Akira began, tapping her index fingers together. Itachi raised an eyebrow. Somehow, he had a feeling he didn't want to know.

Two minutes later, they were comfortably situated in the study. The "minor setback" Akira mentioned turned out to be their positioning. Due to the area Akira would be inspecting and the fact it would take quite some time for her to gather a full evaluation, both of them agreed (albeit begrudgingly) that the best positioning for them would be on the floor with Itachi's head lying on her lap.

Akira turned all shades of red as she suggested this.

Itachi complied without a fuss, telling her that they had been in far more awkward situations during training as well as a certain instance involving showering, a heavy door, and slippery bathroom floors.

She blushed harder at his reply, but recovered quickly.

"Don't you dare fall asleep," Akira warned as she pulled her notebook and pencil within easy reach.

The Uchiha mumbled a small, "Hn."

_As if I could. You would probably attempt to murder me._  He wasn't exactly comfortable with this, either, but if it meant regaining his eyesight, it was worth it.

Nonetheless, a part of him hesitated. As nice as it would be to regain his eyesight, Itachi readily admitted to himself again and again that he deserved to go blind. After all he'd done and all the people he'd hurt to get where he was today, why should he be able to retain something so precious after destroying so much? The same went for his health. What right did he have to live comfortably?

But one more thought occurred to him: Sasuke needed him to stay strong. If he wasn't at least moderately healthy, he wouldn't be able to fight Sasuke and lose convincingly. If he were too weak, Sasuke would know something was wrong and start asking questions. And Akatsuki—he had to worry about them, as much as he hated to admit it, even more than Sasuke. If they found out about his condition, his plans were over. Therefore, allowing Akira to at least attempt to heal him was a necessary step. Training her in exchange for all this wasn't such a bad deal. In the long run, it would be his pride that hurt the most.

"Alright. Just hold still, Itachi," Akira instructed, and, although his eyes were closed, Itachi knew she was executing a hand sign. "Byakugan!"

And with  _The Structure of the Human Eye_  open at her side, Akira began her research.

-

"Byakugan!"

The familiar change in Akira's vision quickly occurred as she locked her gaze onto Itachi's closed eyelids. She had a basic knowledge of the human eye, but certainly not enough to heal Itachi properly. In the least, she knew what to look for. As for the rest… well, that's why she'd brought along that book.

But, as she began scanning the Uchiha's eyes, Akira immediately knew his condition was far more serious than anticipated. So many nerves were just battered, mutilated even… it was unbelievable.

_How do you see at all, Itachi?_  Akira wondered incredulously.

The hard part wouldn't be figuring out how to reverse the damage, it would be actually healing it!

It took her a moment to get a hold of herself. Blinking a few times to regain her thought process, Akira turned her attention back to evaluating.

After grabbing her notebook and ensuring her textbook was opened to the correct page, Akira started scribbling. She didn't even know half of what she was writing. Compare and contrast, random notes, and even a few sketches—anything and everything that came to mind. She needed every pointer she could get. Although she was not an ocular specialist, this was going to take a while.

Itachi remained immobile the entire time. The only sign of him actually being alive was the steady rise and fall of his stomach, and even then, that was subtle. His patience amazed her.

"All right, you can move now," Akira said softly, half-expecting him not to hear her. He had been lying down for Kami only knew how many minutes, hours—she hadn't bothered to keep track. She had what she needed, and, if necessary, she could always come back for more.

Itachi's eyes opened slowly, proving he was indeed awake. The same coal black orbs she had come to know mindlessly stared back at her. Her cheeks turned red again. Akira blamed it on their positions, considering he wasstill lying on her lap. She certainly wasn't used to this type of thing, and, not to mention it was just plain weird looking down on him like this. She had every right to blush.

Then, just as slowly as he'd opened his eyes, Itachi sat up, relieving her legs of their burden and enabling her to finally move again. But, unfortunately, her thighs felt completely numb, at the moment.

"Did you find what you needed?" he asked quietly.

Akira nodded. "It'll take some time for me to figure out a treatment strategy, though." While she spoke, Akira wobbled to her feet. "Just be patient for a little while longer, okay?"

Itachi didn't reply. Instead, he rose to his feet and mutely left the room. No insults and not a word of gratitude. She was alone, and it was time to fulfill her end of the bargain.

Akira stooped over to re-gather her things, but, in the process, nearly toppled over. The blood had yet to fully return to her legs, thus prolonging her journey to the dining room.

She somehow made it without dropping or breaking anything. The feeling was coming back to her legs, but with that feeling also came pain. At last, she collapsed to the ground and quite literally threw her books onto the empty table.

"Dammit," Akira murmured, gritting her teeth as the last of the blood-rushing pain ebbed away. The Hyuuga girl forced her mind back to reality. Then, gripping her pencil tightly, she began writing again.

It took three days—or nights, rather—for Akira to reach her goal. By day, she would go to school, come home, do her homework and daily duties, and then work on healing Itachi's eyesight by night. She couldn't work on it anytime like she had with Itachi's antidote, because she had no way of intertwining her current obligation into what Kaede-sensei was having her study. Translation: currently, healing eyesight had nothing to do with her official training.

It was the afternoon of the fourth day now, and she had actually gotten some time off for a change. Weekends were certainly wonderful. Save for a short training session with Itachi that morning, she had been researching all day, completely discarding her other duties and homework, for the time being. But now it was worth it—finally, she was getting somewhere.

A smile spread across the Hyuuga girl's face. It was risky, and she could only hope that she had enough chakra, but it was a start. In theory, it should work.

She had to find Itachi. There was no time to lose.

Akira took off running before she even knew where she was going.

If she recalled correctly, Itachi had mentioned something about going off to train on his own.

-

"Itachi!"

The Uchiha turned when he heard his name being called. A blob of blonde hair and a female body clad in light blue caught his eye.

_Akira?_  What did she want now?

"Come with me!" she commanded.

"For what purpose, might I ask?"

"You'll see! Just come on!" She seized his wrist and, just like at the hanabi festival, started dragging him toward her destination. Itachi decided it best to not put up a fight. What was she so excited about, anyway?

He started to figure things out when he saw her grab a stack of notes and a familiar-looking book from the dining room table. Even so, there were still papers and others books scattered all over the wooden surface. Had she been there all day?

"Come on!" she urged, continuing to drag him.

Before he knew it, they were in the study, and he knew perfectly well what was going on.

"I take it you've figured out a way to heal my eyesight then?" Itachi had difficulty hiding the eagerness in his tone.

She nodded vigorously. "I'm not entirely sure if it will work, but it should!"

Itachi allowed himself a half smile. She didn't seem to mind his sweaty appearance, considering he had been out training for the past few hours. Like him, she was simply eager to begin.

"Let's get started then, shall we?"

In due time, they returned to the awkward position of Itachi's his head lying on her lap from a few days ago. Neither of them seemed as bashful this time, though. Thankfully, Akira's mind was completely preoccupied.

"I'm not sure how this is supposed to feel, but I don't think it should hurt," she began, executing a hand sign that Itachi recognized as the trigger for her byakugan. "Just hold still, okay?"

"Hn." Itachi didn't need to be told twice, and, to be honest, he didn't really care if it did hurt. Whatever happened, it could not begin to challenge the pain he had already endured in losing his eyesight.

He felt Akira summon healing chakra to her fingertips as she slowly lowered her glowing digits toward his closed eyelids. Itachi waited in anticipation for her touch, but, apparently, Akira had one more thing to say to him.

"And, Itachi…"

He irritably opened one eye.

"Don't forget to breathe."

Then he felt her fingertips touch his eyelids, and it was nothing like he could have ever imagined.

It was far different from feeling her brush his arm to mend a cut, or even when she healed that stubborn wound on his abdomen. It was warm, inviting and, overall, relaxing.

Staying awake may prove more of a battle than he anticipated.

-

_Byakugan!_ Akira quickly focused her gaze on the Uchiha closed eyes, glaring harder and harder until she could finally see what she needed to.

_Here we go._  She would recognized those mutilated nerves anywhere.

She began with a quick scan of the Uchiha's eyes. Needless to say, whatever technique had caused his blindness left no survivors. Some parts were more damaged than others, but, without a doubt, the entire eyeball was defective in some way. If anything, his condition may have worsened since the last time she looked at him.

But she was about to change that. Summoning healing chakra to her fingertips, Akira took a deep breathe and slowly exhaled as she placed her digits over his eyelids. In turn, Itachi remained perfectly still.

The strategy she came up with was actually quite simple, really. She would locate what needed repair with her byakugan, and then use her chakra to fix it. The only hard part would be making sure not to damage anything else along the way. Eyes were a delicate part of the human body, and, when tampered with, even with good intentions, people could get hurt and possibly lose their sight forever. What had taken her so long was figuring out a way not to do that.

Then came the significance of her kekki genaki. In theory, she could do this procedure without her byakugan, but, for both of their sake, she'd spare the extra chakra to use it. It did tax her considerably to gaze at something so complicated for so long, but it was worth it. Not only did she get to see exactly what she was doing, but it also preventing her from wasting chakra on blindly healing anything she came across.

Time ticked by, slowly for her, and quickly for Itachi. Akira glanced at her notes from time to time to ensure she was doing everything properly, but it becoming harder to concentrate. Every second ate up so much of her chakra that Akira wasn't sure how long she could last. Even so, she persevered. Why, she wasn't entirely sure, but she did know one thing: she wanted to do this. She wanted Itachi to see clearly again.

But no matter how much chakra she seemed to give, the damage barely changed. It improved, but only slightly. Without a doubt, one session wouldn't be enough. And, at the moment, she was almost out of chakra.

Akira finally stopped when she felt her head begin to spin as unconsciousness threatened to overcome her. She deactivated her kekki genaki, returning her sight to normal. Unfortunately, with that normal came a splitting headache that she hadn't felt with her byakugan.

"You can get up now." Her words came out as more of a croak, but Itachi seemed to understand her. His eyelids fluttered open, showing off those insanely long eyelashes of his. He stared back up at her blankly, looking dazed.

Akira feared the worst. Had his eyesight not improved at all?

"Itachi?" Her voice went from a croak to pinched and scared. "How's your vision?"

He just kept staring at her. Staring like he'd never seen another human being in his life.

-

"Wow…" The words escaped his lips before his thoughts had time to re-gather. Blurting, as Kisame liked to call it, and something that Itachi prided himself in never doing.

Up until now, anyway.

_"Wow..."_ The word echoed in his mind.

Dammit. Had he really just said that?

Itachi silenced himself as he waited for Akira to react. He recognized his emotions as apprehensive, something else he rarely noticed himself feel, but he had good reason. He knew this girl well enough to know she'd take something like that the wrong way.

"Eh?" Her confused expression surprised him. "What was that?"

Relief washed over him. She hadn't heard him.

Itachi cleared his throat for good measure. "It's nice, being able to see again," he stated. "Before now, I could barely make out what you looked like, let alone my surroundings."

He wasn't lying about that. The only thing he'd been able to tell about Akira was that she was pale, her hair was blonde and her eyes were lavender. Seeing her naked had been one thing, but, even then, he hadn't been able to make out the intricate details like he could now. He'd remained blind to the delicate curves of Akira's body or the true slenderness of her wrists and that kindness sparkling brightly in her eyes. Had he been able to see that when he first met her, he may have been tempted to trust her on the spot.

_Tempted, mind you,_  he confirmed, chiding himself to always trust no one, no matter their appearance. But, overall, she just looked so… so…

"Itachi?"

Innocent. He finally found the word. Her voice could be deceiving, especially that tongue of hers that could spit out just as much poison as it could kindness, but her eyes—they were softer than any Hyuuga's he had ever seen. "Wow" might not even be doing her justice.

"How's your vision?" Akira's voice broke him out of his stupor. Since he was still staring at her, Itachi could make out concern in her eyes that made itself clearer in her tone—a concern he was growing accustomed to.

He cleared his throat again. "Clearer. Not perfect, but much better."

"Better than I expected." She gave him a small smile. "I guess I don't need to tell you we're going to be doing this a lot."

Itachi forced himself to stop staring in order to sit up. He needed to get a hold of himself. He couldn't believe half the thoughts that had just gone through his head. Turning his gaze back to the Hyuuga girl, he noticed something strange. Her eyes seemed wearier than they had a few seconds ago. To be honest, it looked like she was about to—

Too late. She toppled to the side, but managed to regain herself in time to break her fall. Akira looked back up at him sheepishly. Itachi watched as she pushed herself back up into a sitting position before shakily standing up all the way. It took her a moment to fully regain her balance. In the meantime, he rose to his feet, as well.

"Be more careful next time. Chakra exhaustion can be devastating." He knew that better than anyone.

"I will," she assured, strutting past him to make her way toward the door. "You can shower now if you'd like. I'm starting on dinner."

She left the room without another word. Itachi remained for just another minute, absorbing the scenery around him.

Showering could wait. It had been so long since he could see like this. Feeling ambitious, he walked over and plucked a book from the shelf, not caring which one it was. Hastily, Itachi opened the volume and scanned the printed characters, but, much to his dismay, the print far too small and blurry for him to see anything. Apparently, he now had a severe case of near-sightedness.

The Uchiha closed the book and returned it to its rightful place on the shelf.

_No use in getting impatient, I suppose._

After all, Akira had just finished saying it would take some time for anything drastic to happen. Even so, at the moment, he disagreed. Being able to actually make out what another human being looked like was drastic enough for him, even if he still couldn't read. He hadn't been able to engage in that pastime since he used the Amaterasu on Shizuka Aoi.

-

In the next five days, Itachi and Akira created a whole new routine for themselves. Akira went to school, learned all she could, came home exhausted and beat herself into the ground even more during her taijutsu training with Itachi. They'd go back home, Akira would make dinner and recover her chakra, and then they would end their evening with an intensive healing session.

Itachi was recovering day by day, slowly regaining strength and agility with his eyesight. Being able to see again meant that he could train harder, making life easier for him, and, just like everything else, harder for Akira. But even someone as observant as Itachi wasn't picking up on a thing, or at least he didn't seem to. The least he would comment about was a few dark circles forming beneath the Hyuuga girl's pale lavender eyes, circles betraying her true exhaustion.

But nothing was ever done about it, save for the occasional chide for her to get more sleep. And Akira wanted it that way. She hated it when people worried about her, and Itachi was no exception. Besides, he wasn't the type to worry about others.

She spared at glance at the man pacing her dining room.

_Right?_

Akira sighed and turned her attention back to her notes. Why was she even bothering to think about Itachi when he was standing—er, pacing—right next to her? She felt so tired but, at the same time she didn't want to turn in just yet.

Even after her breakthrough with Itachi's eyesight, both of them came to the conclusion that their current method was far too slow. So, here she was, sitting at her dining room table and working on finding something faster. Itachi seemed to be doing a bit of strategizing himself, although about what she had no idea. All she knew was that he seemed restless.

"Itachi?" Judging by the look on his face, she seemed to have interrupted something. Nonetheless, she continued. "You okay?"

"Hn," he grunted. "Just thinking."

She smiled wryly and continued writing. "Just don't let it wear any more lines under those eyes of yours. I'm doing enough work to improve them, I don't need to create an anti-wrinkle cream while I'm at it."

He cast her a dark look, but she smiled back brightly, looking fake enough to seem mocking. A mere tease that she knew he hated.

"I'm going for a walk," he said shortly.

Akira kept smiling. "Be careful. It's dark out there!" she called, not bothering to watch him leave. It was well past nine o'clock at night. What he was thinking going out for a walk at this hour was beyond her, but she didn't question. He was Uchiha Itachi. He had earned her trust enough to do as he pleased.

"Hn." The Uchiha slipped on his shoes and left without another word.

Akira kept working for another few minutes, but, without another person in the room to keep her company, her eyelids began to droop. At first, she settled for the occasional slap in the face once she began closing her eyes and nodding off. But, after a while, even that didn't work.

Akira gripped her pencil more tightly as she struggled to read the next paragraph in the book set before her.

She couldn't surrender yet! She would have plenty of time to rest later. She. Needed. To. Concentrate!

It was no use. All she could do was pray that Itachi would return in time to sober her, but he didn't. Before Akira knew it, matter triumphed over her mind. Her body slumped forward, her eyelids closed and the pencil she'd been gripping fell from her hand with a soft  _clunk_.

She was fast asleep.

-

Itachi took a refreshing gulp of the cool night air as he ventured through the darkness, making mental notes of his surroundings along the way so that he wouldn't get lost.

Being able to see again was wonderful, but he could only ignore the price of his good fortune for so long.

Akira's health was deteriorating. To put it simply, she was pushing herself too hard, and those training sessions she demanded of him weren't doing her any good.

Beating himself into the ground and willingly seeing  _his_  health deteriorate was one thing, but first handedly watching someone else do it was entirely another. It had been surprisingly difficult for him to see Akira as she continued writing note after note, reading sentence after sentence and all for his sake. It reminded him of himself, in an odd, twisted sort of way.

But that had only been one of two reasons he'd decided to take a walk at this ungodly hour, and the other was far more significant.

He attempted to take another breath, but it came out as a cough. The irritation he had been feeling in his chest earlier suddenly swelled, becoming agonizing as he hacked again. One hand flew to his mouth while the other gripped his chest. To ensure he would not trip, Itachi dropped to his knees, staining his clothes with dirt.

Despite the pain, Itachi smiled wryly as another cough shook his body. The familiar taste of iron coated his tongue as the next cough brought forth blood, staining the hand he used to cover his mouth with a sticky red splotch.

He'd been expecting that to happen sooner or later. Thankfully, it had been later enough that he was alone. Akira had seen him like this once before during the first time they trained together, only this time, he couldn't use being poisoned as an excuse.

The fit continued on for another minute, and, by the time it was done, Itachi gasped for breath. The Uchiha slowly retracted his hand from his chest, the pain finally ebbing away into a more dormant state. Its presence still remained, although it was far more bearable now.

He hadn't missed that.

Over the past few days, he'd felt great. This disease without a name had left him alone during that time. The worst he felt had been a dull ache in the pit of his lungs, and now that dull ache had returned to the excruciating pain he remembered.

Whether it was from all the training or his eyesight being healed, Itachi had no idea, although it would make sense that if his eyesight were improving, this accursed disease would do the opposite. It was like a curse, and Itachi didn't need to be a medic to know the two were connected. After all, he had contracted the first stages of this sickness shortly after obtaining the mangekyou. Most likely a combination of grief and strain, given what his situation had been back then. His mother had often said diseases of the lung were connected with grief.

Unfortunately, being an S ranked criminal aside, the longer he stayed, the more chance she had of discovering this, and he didn't want that. She'd seen more of his weaknesses than any other human being alive, and he didn't want to add to that. She'd done so much for him already, and he didn't want to give her something unpleasant like this to remember him by. He wanted to leave and be done with it, and then become nothing more than a distant memory in the dark recesses of her mind.

He needed to get back to Akatsuki before he got any deeper than he already was, and also before Kisame gave up looking for him and settled for presuming him dead. Not to mention, it was already a miracle someone hadn't recognized him yet. He had been insanely lucky to end up in a village this closed off from the rest of the world, or at least Konoha's world.

Itachi didn't want to push that luck any more than he already had. After all, he was never lucky. Whenever he managed to attain some sort of happiness, it was snatched away from him at the worst of times and rightfully so. He'd done the same to so many others. It was only fair that it be done back to him.

Itachi waited a bit longer to ensure he wouldn't return to Akira's household coughing up a storm. Perish the thought, he might end up getting blood on her carpet.

Then again, did Akira even have carpet in her house?

Pushing away the thought, the Uchiha glanced about his surroundings. It had gotten darker. How long had he been gone?

After checking his appearance (albeit a dimmed one) in the nearest body of water and washing the blood from his hand, Itachi headed back double time. He reached the house in minutes. Thankfully, he hadn't wandered far, and Akira had even left the lights on.

Itachi paused on his last thought.

_Wait, Akira left the lights on?_  That was unlike her, especially at this hour.

He hurried inside with that little worry tugging at the corners of his mind.

After kicking off his shoes as quietly as possible, Itachi walked into the brightest room in the entire house: the dining room, where he had last seen the Hyuuga girl hard at work. But what he found was another matter entirely.

Akira hadn't left the lights on. Quite the opposite, actually.

It brought a bit more than his usual half smile to his lips.

Akira was curled up face down over an open textbook, her arms folded over the pages as a makeshift pillow, and her face turned to the side to enable her breathing. A pencil hovered next to her right hand, atop of a small pile of hand written notes.

She'd fallen asleep with a peaceful expression on her face.

Itachi considered waking her, but immediately dismissed the thought. All she would do is migrate to the couch in the study and crash there. He also doubted that she would look so at ease if he did such a thing.

No, he'd let her sleep. Kisame would call it his soft side showing, but Itachi preferred to call it common courtesy. Akira would likely hate him for it in the morning, but, then again, when didn't she have reason to hate him?

But one more thing caught his attention: the Hyuuga girl's choice of dress. Clad in nothing more than a light blue tank top and a pair of jeans, Akira looked cold, despite her peaceful expression. Hardly the factor to welcome a good night's sleep and especially in this autumn weather. The mutilated remains of his conscience nagged him to do something about it.

He complied. After all, no one was watching, and he would be leaving soon, anyway.

After a short detour through the hallway, Itachi fumbled his way to Akira's bedroom closet without turning the lights on. His deteriorating eyesight had been good for something—he learned how to navigate especially well in the dark.

Sliding open the door, Itachi reached for the top shelf. His fingertips brushed against something soft and fuzzy. Exactly what he'd been looking for.

He gripped the object and pulled, bringing a thick green blanket out of Akira's nightmare of a closet. Itachi closed the door and slipped back out of the room, leaving no proof of his invasion save for the absence of a certain green blanket.

He was back in the dining room in the matter of seconds, and, if his ears did not deceive him, Akira's breathing was even and deep, indicating she was still in a far off world of slumber. Itachi advanced a step toward her, and, after unfolding the blanket in his arms, he softly slipped the object over Akira's shoulders, ending her subconscious shivering.

It gave him a good feeling, watching her sleep. He didn't know why, but it felt like her peaceful expression was almost contagious.

_Almost_. He wasn't quite at peace yet. He would have to be dead for that.

Itachi turned off the light, darkening the entire house. Even so, Akira hardly stirred and merely moaned softly. He smiled to himself again as he made his way back to the Hyuuga girl's bedroom.

Come to think of it, he was feeling a bit drowsy himself. Today hadn't been very relaxing. Admittedly, it was far easier than Akira's or any typical day he endured at Akatsuki, but still, he was tired.

Once again not bothering to turn on the light, Itachi flopped onto the bed. He would change his clothes in a little while. For now, he just wanted to close his eyes. He was well-trained enough to not fall asleep. All he needed was a few minutes.

But those few minutes turned into the rest of the night.


	10. Chapter 10

Akira awoke that morning with a strange ease. She felt so comfortable. Her chest ached for some reason, but not enough to make her want to move.

“What time is it?” she muttered sleepily, fumbling her hand around for the nonexistent alarm clock beside of her to check the time. Her eyes were still closed.

_Where is the damn thing? I swear I put it within reach._

The Hyuuga girl irritably opened one eye, but froze midway. Needless to say, she didn’t find her alarm clock. Half of her wondered if she were still dreaming, but after a few rapid blinks, she confirmed that this was definitely not the case.

_What am I doing in the dining room?_

She slowly straightened her back to sit up, reawakening the ache in her chest.

Well, her surroundings explained the mild discomfort. She’d been leaning against the edge of a table the entire night.

Akira glanced around the room until her eyes rested on the conveniently-placed clock on her wall. It read 7:05.

_Was I really out that long?_ She must have fallen asleep. But then what—

Her thoughts came to a screeching stop when she felt something fall from her shoulders. Without it, she didn’t feel warm anymore.

_A blanket?_ This was from her closet. Her fingers briefly stroked the woolen material. That was funny. She didn’t remember fetching this. Wait, then that meant—

_Itachi…_ It had to be. There was no one else around. In the very least, this meant he’d come home safely from his walk, but still...

_Itachi did this?_ Wow. Out of character much? Not that she was complaining. And speaking of that Uchiha…

_I may as well go and check on him,_ Akira decided, rising to her feet and promptly reaching up both arms to stretch her muscles.

Shifting the blanket so that it would remain on her shoulders, she entered the bedroom on tiptoes. Her lips twisted into a smile at the sight inside.

Yep. Itachi was still asleep. And in quite the position, too. Sprawled out flat on his back and above the covers, the Uchiha looked probably the most disheveled she’d seen him… well, ever.

The only thing that could have made the sight more perfect would be if he were snoring, which he, of course, wasn’t. It looked like he’d just collapsed, which he quite possibly could have. Judging by his outside clothes and the splotches of dirt covering his kneecaps, he hadn’t even bothered to change.

Still smiling, Akira readjusted her grip on the blanket and continued toward the slumbering Uchiha.

He looked a lot more relaxed up close. But, she may as well wake him. He’d probably appreciate being able groom himself properly without the hindrance of fatigue.

“Itachi.” She gently shook him. He mumbled something inaudible, but did not wake. “Itachi!” she repeated with a firmer shake this time.

Still nothing. One more time.

“Itachi!”

At last, his eyes began to flutter open. And with that, a hand flew toward her throat.

-

Itachi’s eyes shot open when he heard a voice softly calling his name followed by a gentle touch on his shoulder. His years of being on-the-run kicked in as he instinctively sprang into a sitting position while his hand darted out to subdue whoever it was. His fingers made contact with the person’s throat and simply hovered there, not yet squeezing, until his vision focused.

His eyes widened in astonishment when his intruder revealed to be Akira.

“Do you mind?” Her voice sounded choked. Now fully awake, Itachi quickly retracted his hand. She gripped her neck and coughed once or twice, but regained herself in a few seconds.

“You and your damn reflexes,” she muttered darkly, gingerly rubbing the area.

“I apologize. It’s never a good idea to wake me without having your guard up.”

She just glared at him. He shrugged, figuring she had her reasons. “How may I help you?”

“I came in to check on you, but I noticed you crashed after your walk yesterday, so I figured you might appreciate if I woke you up.”

“Hn. Thank you.”

She headed toward the door to leave. “Make sure to put your dirty clothes in the wash pile,” she added. “I’m starting on breakfast.”

“Hn.” He found it odd that she still wasn’t leaving.

“And try not to trip next time, okay? Grass stains are a pain to get out.”

Itachi’s gaze descended to his kneecaps as she walked away, where reminders of his coughing experience from yesterday resided.

He sighed. Well, on the bright side, at least she hadn’t asked for details.

He emerged from the bedroom a good ten minutes later to be greeted by the refreshing smell of breakfast being cooked. After dropping off his clothes in the laundry room as Akira had requested, he followed the aroma to the kitchen to find Akira hard at work frying something on the stove. The green blanket he’d given her last night was still draped around her shoulders.

“Ah, finally here I see.” Akira looked his way and grinned. “Could you set the table? I’m almost done here.”

“Hn.”

The table was set. Not even a minute afterwards, Akira emerged from the kitchen with their breakfast in hand.

“It’s certainly getter colder, and if I didn’t know better, I’d say it’s getter harder to get up every morning,” Akira remarked, picking up her chopsticks. She clapped her hands together. “Itadikimasu!”

They ate the rest of their meal in silence. That is, until Akira decided to break it.

“Um, thanks for yesterday,” she said, blushing a bit as she fiddled with her chopsticks. “That was really kind of you.”

Itachi knew she was referring to the blanket he’d covered her with. She’d shed it to eat, and it now lay neatly folded in the corner to his right. The gooseflesh on Akira’s skin protested its absence, but she did her best to ignore it.

“Hn.” He grunted and looked away. He hadn’t expected her to thank him, but it still felt good to hear it. How long had it been since someone had shown appreciation for something he’d done again?

“Anyway,” Akira continued, “I should be getting ready now. Kaname and Eri will be here any minute!”

Itachi watched as the Hyuuga girl cleaned up her nearly untouched dishware before dashing in the direction of her room.

The fact that she’d barely eaten anything did not weigh well on his mind. He could only hope she wasn’t getting sick.

Then, just as Akira reemerged from the hallway, books in hand and ready to start the day, a knocking echoed through the area.

“That’s probably them.” Akira sighed exasperatedly. Itachi simply sat at her table and continued watching her. She turned back to him. “Take your time, just be sure to clean up afterwards.”

Itachi rose to his feet as if he hadn‘t heard her.

“I’ll see you off,” he stated. She looked surprised.

“O-okay…”

At the doorway, Akira’s friends greeted her with bright smiles and Itachi with slightly confused, but pleasant looks. The Hyuuga girl briefly turned back to Itachi before walking out to join them.

“Behave yourself,” she frowned.

He looked back at her with his usual half-smile. “Just make sure you eat something come lunch time.”

The door closed, and the trio’s footsteps slowly grew softer.

Meanwhile, Itachi returned to the dining room to finish eating.

-

Akira awkwardly shifted her weight as she glanced back and forth between her friends.

Something unnerved her about their expressions… and they both seemed to be looking at _her_.

“What?” she demanded.

They just smirked.

“Since when did you and Itachi get so friendly?” Kaname asked, her tone teasing.

“What?”

“He did seem concerned for you,” Eri chimed in. “Why else would he make sure that you’re eating properly? He even saw you off this morning. I‘ve never seen him do that before.”

Akira felt her face heat up.

“I swear, you two could be married, and I wouldn’t know the difference!” Kaname declared.

The Hyuuga girl, if possible, turned redder. “I’ve already told you, it’s not like that!” Akira protested. “He’s usually not awake when I leave for school, that’s the only reason you guys saw him!”

“He could still be in love with you, though. You did save his life,” Eri pointed out.

“I am absolutely positive that is not the case!” Akira insisted. “Are he and I not allowed to get along or something?”

“Just telling you what we see. Nothing more, nothing less,” Kaname assured. Eri nodded in agreement.

Akira frowned. Both her friends still wore unnecessarily smug looks. She clenched her fists.

Looked like she’d have to resort to violence to solve this one.

_Whap! Wham!_

“Ow!”

“Itatatai…”

-

“Hello, girls,” Kaede greeted, her expression mildly pleasant, yet serious at the same time. She took a moment to examine the kunoichi and then raised an eyebrow. “Kaname, Eri, is something wrong?”

Both girls tentatively rubbed where Akira had none-too-kindly punched them in the arm.

“Not to worry, they’ll be fine!” Akira chirped. The duo cast her annoyed looks, but kept their mouths shut, knowing they deserved it.

“Anyway,” Kaede continued, “on with today’s lesson.”

Karasuma Kaede was a middle-aged woman roughly 5’ 6” with bright purple eyes. Her thick brown hair was just above waist length with a small portion clipped back while the remainder pooled loosely down her back. She wore a long purple robe with gold designs brimming the sleeves as well as the sash hugging her waist. Permanently engraved in her face were two smiles lines, surprising to many, considering the woman’s strict tendencies, but such was necessary with her position as the village’s head healer.

But to the three of them, she was more than just a figurehead. She was their mentor, and the closest thing to a mother Akira would ever have. Kaede-sensei had been the one to accept her into this village when she’d had nowhere else to go, and, though she didn’t remember everything, Akira was eternally grateful for it.

“Please open your textbooks to page 413.”

There was a brief scuffle of paper as the kunoichi obeyed. Then, once everyone was ready, Kaede proceeded with the lecture.

Akira wouldn’t necessary call the lecture boring, but she did find herself feeling rather drowsy. Maybe it was just the topic or the simple fact that she was still sleep deprived. For whatever reason, Akira’s mind began drifting off to a different topic of far more significance to her: healing Itachi’s eyesight.

_How could I possibly do things faster than I already am?_ The question had been baffling her lately. It had been hard enough to figure out a treatment strategy, but something faster? She’d agreed to look into it, but she had yet to come up with a way to do so.

_All this just traces back to that eye technique he uses, right?_ Akira mindlessly fiddled with her pencil. _It’s probably linked to that kekki genkai I‘ve seen him use while we train. Come to think of it, he never did tell me what it was called or even what it does._

“Akira!” Kaede’s voice interrupted the Hyuuga girl’s thoughts. “Pay attention.”

Akira kept musing, regardless.

_I wonder if it’s anything like my byakugan. If that’s the case, will my byakugan cause me to go blind?_ She thoughtfully brushed her fingers across her chin. _Doubtful, now that I consider it. Itachi must have just over-used his._

It would make sense. But still, what about that technique he used? If only she could examine it with her byakugan to see what exactly it did to make his eyesight so horrible. If she did that, then—

Akira stopped herself there. The realization hit her like a punch in the face—hard, and with an unpleasant stinging sensation afterwards.

That was it! She knew how to heal him faster!

“Akira!” Kaede’s voice sounded again, making the Hyuuga girl cringe. Kaname and Eri both glanced at her.

“Sorry, I’ll pay attention now,” Akira promised.

And that she did. The rest of the day seemed to drag on by after her breakthrough, but Akira endured it with a jovial grin. At lunch, she even did as Itachi requested and made sure to eat as much as her stomach could hold. Kaname and Eri had both smirked at her again, but she’d paid them no heed. She should really be immune to their teasing by now.

She parted ways with the duo at their usual spot, but once her friends were out of sight, she broke out into a sprint. She couldn’t get home fast enough. She couldn’t wait to tell him.

Akira smiled. Better yet, she couldn’t wait to see his reaction.

She reached the house in record time and rushed inside. Quickly scanning for chakra presences, Akira located her desired target in the study, most likely reading.

The Hyuuga girl slowed to a walk as she headed there. Well, at least this saved her having to look for him.

Itachi glanced up from his novel as she entered the room. He took notice of her panting from all the running.

“Something wrong?” he asked.

Akira shook her head, her lips twisted in a smile.

“I think I’ve found a faster way to heal your eyesight,” she announced.

His eyes lit up—or at least as much as Itachi’s eyes _could_ light up. His reaction had been better than she’d hoped.

“Do explain.” Itachi closed the book before replacing it on the shelf beside him. Then he stood up and walked over to her.

“Well, for starters, this eye technique you use… it’s from your kekki genkai, correct?”

He nodded.

“Well, what’s it called?”

“The sharingan. It’s actually derived from your byakugan.” He seemed to have read her mind. “But, not to worry, I‘ve never heard of a Hyuuga losing their sight.”

“All right… sharingan then…” Akira trailed off. “What exactly does it do? I‘ve seen your eyes turn red when you activate it, and I‘ve also noticed that you always seem to know my next move, so does it have anything to do with predicting your opponent‘s attacks?”

Itachi nodded again. “Correct. That as well as assessing chakra, similar to yours, except I cannot see through solid objects.”

“Then what’s killing your eyesight? So far, the sharingan sounds completely harmless.”

Itachi looked away. He seemed hesitant to answer this question.

“Other… _techniques_ that I use.”

“Such as?”

“Where exactly are you going with this?”

“I’d like you to show me.”

“My eye techniques?”

She nodded.

His expression changed in an instant. His lips pursed and his eyes became extremely cold.

“No.”

“What? Why not?”

He hesitated again. It reminded her of the time she’d discovered the true state of eyesight, and it only confused her. What was there to be hesitant about?

But, he finally spoke. “For starters, a good number of my eye techniques evolve into destructive ninjutsu. I doubt you’d be able to observe them without killing yourself.”

“And the rest?”

He smiled wryly. “Genjutsu.”

“So you can trap people in a genjutsu just by making eye contact with them?”

“Yes.”

Akira couldn’t help but exclaim, “Cool! I wish I could do that!”

Had Itachi been anyone else, he probably would have scoffed. Or at least that’s what his expression told her.

“What’s wrong with that?” Akira inquired.

“What goal do you intend to achieve by observing my eye techniques?”

Akira sighed. Typical Itachi. Answering a question with another question.

“Well, if I can see what the technique does, it would make it easier for me to concentrate on the area it attacks before the damage spreads. Not to mention, it’s possible that I could reverse engineer the technique. Find out what it’s do wrong, fix it while you perform it, and, if we’re lucky, you may be able to continue using your jutsu without having to worry about going blind. It would take one, maybe two sessions to completely heal you. One to reverse the jutsu so that it stops hurting your eyes, and then another to fix the remaining damage.”

Her explanation had been long, but he seemed to understand. What she didn’t understand was why he still seemed opposed to this. So she asked.

“What have you got to lose, Itachi?”

The room filled with silence as she waited for his answer.

“It’s not me I’m concerned about,” he finally said.

“Then what is it?”

“If you make eye contact with me and get pulled in, you _will_ regret it.” His tone was short. Maybe even apprehensive. “Tsukuyomi is not a place—”

“Tsukuyomi?” she interjected, blinking in confusion. “What’s that?”

Itachi held back a sigh. He’d already said too much, and Akira wasn’t about to give up.

“It’s irrelevant. I refuse to do this.”

“But you’re the one who asked me to think of a faster way!” she protested. “And here I think of one and you’re saying no? Besides, I can use my byakugan to look through your eyelids so that we won’t make direct eye contact.”

“Even so, the risk is far too great. I refuse to allow you to do something so reckless.”

“At least think about it?” Her tone was pleading. “Itachi, this isn’t about me. You want to be able to see again, right?”

“Not at your expense!”

His tone was final. This conversation was over.

To prove his point, Itachi walked back over the book shelf to retrieve the book he’d been reading.

“If you’d like, we can train later today,” he said, returning to his position on the couch.

Akira gritted her teeth. How dare he ignore her?

“I’ll pass for today. But please, at least think about it.” Akira somehow managed to keep her cool as she turned around to leave the room.

The door slammed shut behind her.

_I’m training by myself today,_ Akira decided, knowing that she was going to need some serious venting time. Besides, it would give her a chance to work on ninjutsu.

-

Itachi felt Akira’s presence leave the premises, most likely headed for the training grounds. Unsurprisingly, she didn’t want his instruction today.

After all, he had just refused her. She was undoubtedly angry and insulted. Itachi didn’t blame her for that. But he did have a good reason.

Like he’d said, if she were pulled into Tsukuyomi, his only powerful technique that she could possibly observe without killing herself, she’d never be the same again. If it had put Hatake Kakashi in the hospital for a week, he didn’t even want to think about what it would do to her.

He didn’t want that on his conscience. He’d rather continue going blind than allow that to happen. Besides, he could afford the loss. All it meant was that he’d have to wait a bit longer before returning to Kisame. They would have to do this the slow way, despite the possibility that he may go blind, anyway. Akira only had so much chakra, and she could only heal him so many times a day. His eyes were deteriorating rapidly anyway, even without using the sharingan.

He could only hope that they would finish in time. For all Itachi knew, Kisame could be on his way back to Akatsuki by now. He couldn’t contact his partner with his Akatsuki ring, because, according to Akira, he’d lost it during his fall. Also, since Itachi made a point to keep his promises, he refused to walk out on Akira until she either finished or admitted defeat.

At times like this, Itachi wondered why he didn’t just give into the criminal that he pretended to be. It would certainly be easier than having to lead a double life all the time.

But, then again, a double life was all he knew. Even back in Konoha, he’d forced himself to be someone he wasn’t. He was just older now. More mature and smarter.

And in far worse condition than he could have ever imagined.

As much as Itachi hated to admit it, he _needed_ his eyesight, and he needed it to be clear if he was going to survive. Not to mention, the sharingan and every other eye technique he used would be useless if his eyes lost their light. Then when Akatsuki found out, they would undoubtedly expel him, and, with all the enemies he had, Itachi knew he wouldn‘t last a week.

He couldn’t let that happen. There’d be no one left to protect Sasuke, no one left to look out for him until he was finally strong enough. Danzou and so many others would suddenly attack the ignorant boy, and, no matter how strong he was, his brother wouldn’t make it.

Not with Orochimaru, anyway. That snake was far too easy to track.

But one little change could prevent all those disasters from happening—Itachi needed his sight back, and he needed it _now_. And the only the way to do that was to take Akira up on her offer and allow her to investigate and maybe even cure him. Or, he’d lead the girl to certain doom and his eyes would continue to deteriorate. It was either one extreme or the other.

But which should he choose?

-

“That was exhausting,” Akira muttered as she walked home, her body aching and her clothes soaked in sweat.

It had been a great distraction to train. Not to mention she was definitely getting stronger.

_Yeah, thanks to Itachi._

She didn’t want to acknowledge that at the moment. Even though she’d had some time to vent, it had done little to lesson her irritation.

Seriously, she’d only been trying to help. What was wrong with showing her a few techniques?

Her house was in sight now. Akira wanted to run, but her muscles screamed in protest, and, for once, she listened to them and continued at a walk.

Itachi had mentioned something about not wanting to hurt her, but did he really think her that helpless?

Akira paused, reconsidering her last thought.

No, maybe it wasn’t because he thought her weak or useless, but still! She was old enough to take care of herself and make her own choices. The only condition was that she couldn’t look him in the eye, right? If Itachi cooperated, how hard was that?

Even after a hot shower, Akira’s head still remained cluttered. She just couldn’t relax.

“Ugh!” Akira growled, flopping onto the bed behind her. She could feel Itachi’s presence in the study next door. He hadn’t moved since their argument… or disagreement, rather. They hadn’t really been arguing now that she thought about it.

“I should get started on dinner.”

Whether she liked it or not, she was hungry, and, by this time, Itachi probably was, too. Even if she was angry at him, she had no right to withhold food from him.

Pushing herself off the bed, Akira took a quick glance at the bathroom mirror to make sure nothing was amiss before heading out to the kitchen.

From there, it didn’t take her long to decide what to make, and, five minutes later, Akira found herself heating up leftovers on the stove. She really didn’t feel like cooking today.

As she stirred, her mind began wandering again. Time blurred as she became completely oblivious to all that was happening around her. So oblivious, in fact, that she failed to hear the soft _thump_ of footsteps approaching her.

“Akira—”

“Wha—?” She jumped, almost dropping the wooden spoon in her hand, and whipped around to face the speaker. Her nostrils detected a putrid odor. To her horror, she turned back to see the soup she’d been stirring beginning to burn.

“Dammit!” Yelping, she yanked the pot off the burner, praying that her meal would still be edible. Thankfully, it was, but there was still one more problem that required her attention.

“What are you doing here?” Itachi looked at her blankly when she asked this.

“Am I not allowed to walk around?”

“Usually I don’t see you unless you’re going out to train or I call you.” She scanned the Uchiha from head to foot with critical eyes. “So which is it?”

“I’ve been thinking about what you said.”

Akira gave him a disbelieving look. “From what you told me, that topic wasn’t even up for debate.” She turned back to the soup and began distributing it into bowls.

Itachi read the coldness of her tone loud and clear.

“That’s why I came out here…” Itachi trailed off, almost as if he were building up suspense. “I want you to try healing my eyesight with your new technique.”

“But…?” There had to be more. “You weren’t even willing to consider this three hours ago. What changed your mind?”

“I am quite serious when I say that you could get hurt.”

Akira frowned. “I appreciate your concern,” his eyes twitched at the word “concern,” “but I can take care of myself.”

“That’s not the point!” he all but snapped. “If you’re going to do this, you _cannot_ make a mistake.”

“I won’t!” Akira momentarily glared at him. “Have a little faith in me. Time is of the essence, right? Let‘s get started then,” she said, about to begin walking to the study.

But, Itachi stopped her—by grabbing her wrist.

“Eat first.” He half-smiled. “We can at least afford to wait that long.”

Despite being somewhat burnt, dinner turned out fine. The two of them even managed a light conversation. Then—once chakra was restored and all was cleaned up—it was time to begin.

“All right…” The Hyuuga girl exhaled deeply in an attempt to relax. She turned her gaze to the man on her lap. “You ready for this?”

“As long as you are successful.” His tone was still obviously hesitant, yet, at the same time, he wasn’t stopping her. After all, if this worked, his eyesight would be completely restored.

She smiled understandingly. “Then let’s do this gradually, okay?”

“Hn.”

After a few quick hand signs, Akira murmured, “Byakugan!”

She stared into Itachi’s closed eyelids, then through them and into those familiar damaged nerves.

“This kekki genkai of yours, the sharingan, right? You mentioned it works in stages?”

“Hn. This is the first stage.”

Chakara flooded into the Uchiha’s eyes, changing his irises to a vibrant shade of crimson. In the center of his eye, three little black comma-like dots rapidly spun around in a clockwise circle—something she hadn’t quite noticed before. The damage it caused was barely noticeably, although it was, nonetheless, there.

“Just hold still,” Akira instructed, not caring that he probably already knew to do so. Then, after summoning healing chakra to her fingertips, Akira began.

It didn’t take long for her to complete the first task: fifteen, twenty minutes tops. So far, so good.

“Alright.” Itachi sensed the relief in her tone. “Now, this next stage—”

“You _cannot_ make direct eye contact with me.”

Akira resisted the urge to groan. “I know. I just wanted to ask you what it was called.”

“Tsukuyomi.”

“All right then. Show it to me.”

Every muscle in Itachi’s body tensed. Even with only his head on her lap, Akira could feel it. Halfway through, he was still extremely uncomfortable with this. For a second, Akira almost expected him to demand that she halt the procedure at once.

But, for some reason, after taking a brief moment to collect himself, Itachi continued.

The three spinning “commas” of his sharingan slowly merged into one. It created a black tri-ended pinwheel of sorts that swallowed up nearly two-thirds of the Uchiha’s iris.

_Amazing,_ Akira thought. _I can’t do anything like this with my byakugan._

That was only the beginning. The pinwheel of his mangekyou wasn’t necessarily spinning, but it was somehow incredibly hypnotic. She couldn’t put her finger on the reason why.

This time, the damage inflicted looked incredibly painful. Whatever this technique did, it put a huge strain on Itachi’s eyes. It baffled her how he managed to do all this with a straight face.

Akira was seconds away from beginning her treatment, but she stopped.

It was odd, really. It felt like an overpowering force was just pulling her in. Could this be what Itachi had been talking about?

His words of warning rang through her head.

_“I am quite serious when I say that you could get hurt.”_

So Akira did the only thing she could—she resisted, and it was far more difficult than she could have ever imagined.

Resisting Itachi’s genjutsu felt like trying to claw her way out of a vacuum. She couldn‘t hold on. She was being sucked in.

Before Akira knew it, Itachi and all of her other surroundings disappeared. A sense of alarm flooded through her as everything was replaced by a dim world with a blood red sky and menacing black clouds.


	11. Chapter 11

Akira knew this had to be Itachi‘s illusion, because she no longer sat in her living room.

Her feelings of dread only worsened as the objects around her began to spin. The genjutsu clouded her senses, and Akira felt as if her brain were being stretched every which way.

Somehow through the chaos, her hands came together to form a seal. Then, after momentarily cutting off her chakra, she softly whispered, “Kai!”

Nothing happened. Akira’s eyes widened. If this was a genjutsu, why couldn’t she get out?

The scenery around her was completely different now. Instead of an open space with a black and red sky, she was standing in a village.

Akira did a double take.

An eerily familiar village…

She knew this place. But how?

Two figures slowly began forming in front of her, figures of people. The sky above her changed to a gloomy dark gray, almost as if it were going to rain. Another de ja vu feeling swept over her, but along with it came additional feelings of alarm.

She wasn’t supposed to be here. Every instinct in Akira’s body told her to run _._

The two figures were fully formed now: a man and a woman, judging by the shape of their bodies. Shadows covered their faces, and Akira crept closer to examine them. Something was still telling her to run.

But where could she go?

Her eyes widened when she recognized them.

“I can’t be,” Akira murmured incredulously.

Those two people, they were…

“Kaa-san? Tou-san?”

_No…_  Her parents been dead for eight years!

But it was them. There was no mistake. She spent every morning staring at their picture on her nightstand. They were dressed exactly the same with their hair in the exact same styles, and not a line on their smooth young faces.

Her parents hadn’t aged a day. Hyuuga Shuuichi and Hyuuga Kiari looked the same as the day they had died.

Akira called out to them.

“Kaa-san? Tou-san?” Her voice pinched. Shadows still covered their faces, obscuring their eyes, and preventing her from seeing their full expressions.

What was this illusion?

Finally, her father looked up at her, and her mother followed. The looked exactly the same, save for their eyes. They were so cold… She had to be seeing things!

 “You’re a failure, Akira,” Shuiichi said, his voice stern, far sterner than she’d ever heard. It was full of hate and bitterness. Tears sprang into the Hyuuga girl’s eyes as she desperately turned to her mother.

“You hid like the coward you are while we were slaughtered right in front of you! How dare you call yourself a Hyuuga!” Kiari’s sapphire blue eyes burned with resentment, her voice also filled with venom.  “How dare you call yourself my daughter?”

Her mind rejected the information. No, her parents had never talked to her like this. Besides, they were dead, long dead. Then why…?

Before she could attempt to reason away anything else, her world was spinning again. The ominous gray clouds in the sky burst, releasing torrents of rain as more and more figures began appearing throughout the village.

Akira knew where she was now—this was where she’d grown up; this was where she‘d lost everything.

A horde of figures near the entrance of the village held weapons of all shapes and sizes. They looked like shinobi. Each one of them had looming, evil looks on their faces. All the others scattered throughout the village put on the front of an innocent civilian. But no matter who she looked at, Akira couldn’t shake her feelings of dread that were quickly turning into panic.

She knew these people, every single one of them… It was all coming back now. Memories that she’d tried so to hard forget.

Akira didn’t want to watch what happened next, but, for some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to look away. It felt like a powerful force was controlling her; her body was no longer her own.

A man, most likely the leader, yelled something she didn’t quite understand. Most likely something along the lines of “Kill everything thing in sight, and take what you can!”

The horde attacked, and the bloodshed began.

A combination of rain and body fluids soaked Akira’s clothes as she watched the battle, if you could even call it that. Pillage would be a more accurate description. Every villager she ran across died, most of them not even bothering to put up a fight.

Somehow, Akira found the ability to run, but, no matter what she tried, she couldn’t stop them. The enemy would go right through her as if she were a ghost. She couldn’t touch them. All she could do was watch.

Time blurred as she witnessed murder after murder. It didn’t matter where she went, she’d see everything regardless. It felt like hours, days… she really couldn’t tell. But after all that time, one coherent thought finally strung together in her had.

Her parents—where had they gone?

Akira slowly made her way through the blood-filled streets, stumbling every few steps as tears streamed down her face. She hated not being able to do anything. She kept telling herself that this was an illusion, but no matter what she did, the tears kept coming.

She passed a merchant that her family used to see every day. Then a kind old man that used to give her candy, and a little girl she used to play with… All these people were almost unrecognizable and sprawled out on the ground in the most grotesque of ways. She couldn’t even tell whose blood was whose.

Finally, Akira reached her destination—her old home.

After flinging open the door, the Hyuuga girl rushed inside. She heard a brief murmur of voices. It was coming from the master bedroom. The same place she’d watched her parents die.

She took off in said direction. The voices became louder. But, before she could see anyone, everything went black again.

When sight was returned to her, Akira found herself peeking through her only source of light, a small crack in a door.

She was still in her parents’ house. This was the closet where they’d hidden her.

And, sure enough, her parents’ figures came into view. Shadows danced behind them on the dim walls of the hallway leading to their room—her parents’ killers were approaching.

Akira tried to move, but she couldn’t. Whatever this illusion was, it made her feel like she had weights strapped to her limbs. Come to think of it, she couldn’t even breathe. All she could do was watch.

Somehow, Akira managed to squeeze her eyelids shut, causing more tears to flow out of her eyes and down her chin. The images were twice as vivid in her head; she could still seeing everything.

Blood splattered the walls. Two sickening thumps sounded, one right after the other. Hyuuga Shuuichi and Kiari lay motionless on the ground, growing pools of crimson surrounding their bodies. Their murderers cackled and left the room as quickly as they’d come to search for valuables.

It was all rushing back to her, every memory of this day. She couldn’t just brush this off as a bad dream anymore. She was reliving it.

Blood pounded through her ears as image after image filled her head, overlapping one another and making her senses go crazy. It felt like her head was splitting in half. She could feel, see, smell  _everything_ —it was numbing.

It took every ounce of willpower she had, but, through some miracle, Akira screamed. One long, drawn out, pathetic wail. She couldn’t take it anymore. She just couldn’t.

It had to stop. She would go insane. She was  _going_  insane. She—

“Oi!” Her eyes snapped open. Another voice? Had they found her? What if—

Her panicked thoughts came to a screeching stop when the closet door opened, and a new character entered the scene. Whoever it was, he was definitely male, and although she couldn’t quite make out what he looked like, he seemed somehow… shorter, than most. The reason why became clear in a second.

It was only a child, maybe twelve or thirteen years old. He was a ninja, though. Why else would he have a sword on his back?

But it bothered Akira that she still couldn’t see what he looked like.

“A survivor?” Someone stood behind the boy towering over her. He sounded older, but only a bit. A mask hid most of the older boy’s face, and his hair was silvery white and wildly spiked. Come to think of it, both of their voices were familiar… they weren’t her enemies, she could tell that much. If they were, she’d be choking on her own blood by now.

“Hn.” A brief shuffle of cloth. Her adolescent rescuer finally stepped into the light.

Her eyes widened.

She knew that face. Smooth pale skin, long raven hair, crimson eyes, and those unmistakable stress lines—it couldn’t be…

It was Itachi, but younger.  _Much_  younger. Why was she seeing him of all people?

She caught his gaze, but those crimson orbs were the last thing she saw before everything went black again.

Her head resumed spinning, but only for a second. Then all became perfectly still. No more screams, no more weapons and she could no longer smell the putrid odor of blood covering everything.

It took a moment for Akira to realize her eyes were closed. She hesitantly opened them, expecting to see a new world of torture, but instead finding herself back in the study on her knees with a familiar Uchiha’s head on her lap. It should have calmed her down, but it didn’t. Memories of carnage and bloodshed, the murder of people she had loved and cared about, were still flying through her head.

She had deactivated her byakugan at one point, but Akira couldn’t quite remember when. She glanced down at Itachi. His eyes were closed. He looked asleep.

But, ever so slowly, his eyes opened, and he returned her gaze.

His irises were black. The nightmare was over.

Relief washed over her. Then, unable to hold back anymore, Akira cried for real.

-

When his vision focused again, Itachi knew something had gone wrong. The disappointment hit him immediately—he couldn’t see clearly, anymore.

Something fell onto his face. It felt like warm water.

He looked up, and, although his vision was blurry, he recognized Akira. Her soft lavender eyes were red and puffy. The water he’d felt were tears.

She made no effort to stop him as he gradually sat up. She just sat there, not even seeming to breathe. The liquid flowing from her eyes was the only assurance Itachi had that she was still alive.

But, before Itachi could do anything, an excruciating pain shot through his eyes. Liquid began filling up his tear glands, but, unlike Akira, it wasn’t water. Scarlet tears of blood snaked down his cheeks, leaving faded red trails in their wake. It came out of both eyes this time, not just his left.

A stiffed sob interrupted the Uchiha’s thoughts, bringing his attention back to the distraught Hyuuga girl. Although shorter than most, Akira’s time in Tsukuyomi was enough to drive any normal human being out of their mind.

Itachi didn’t know what, but something possessed him to reach out and touch her shoulder. Without anyone else, he wouldn’t dare consider this, but this was Akira. She didn’t look all right, and clearly she’d didn’t  _feel_  alright.

And Itachi never would have expected what happened next. Not in a million years.

Akira jumped forward, arms outstretched, and…  _hugged_  him. She mumbled something over and over again. He finally managed to decipher the words, “I’m sorry.”

They were both sitting up now. It would be so easy for him to push her away. He still had time to stand up and walk away. What did he know about comforting someone, anyway? Akira would be better off dealing with this on her own.

But Itachi did no such thing. Something was telling him not to. Instead, he ever so slowly brought his arms up to rest on the Hyuuga girl’s quivering shoulders. Her tears soaked his shirt, leaving wet splotches on the soft material. But he didn’t care. Her arms squeezed his torso tightly, and, with a bit less force, Itachi squeezed her back.

-

It was everything Akira could do to remember to breathe. She couldn’t think straight, and hot tears blinded her vision. She could only feel, and, at the moment, the feeling of Itachi’s embrace was her only anchor to reality.

It didn’t make sense to her. Itachi should be pushing her away. She knew he hated it when people touched him, yet here she was, clinging to him like some stupid, lost puppy.

He was right. She had been too weak to heal him. Her strategy backfired on both of them. He should be angry with her right now. Why was he doing this? Why was he being so kind to her?

None of these questions were answered as she clung to him with quiet sobs. Nearly ten minutes later, she’d finally calmed down enough to stop crying, but, even so, neither of them moved. Itachi seemed to think she’d fallen asleep, which she was very near to doing, actually, but the fear of nightmares prevented her from giving in to the exhaustion.

His arms surrounded her, his chin gently rested atop her head to hold her in place while she pressed her face into his chest.

It took every ounce of willpower she had to pull away from Itachi‘s warmth. Droplets of salty water had dried on her face, leaving crusty markings below her eyes and on the skin of her cheeks.

Itachi stared at her blankly, almost uncaringly. Akira half-expected herself to blush from the awkwardness of it all, but, for some reason, she didn’t. Another minute passed before someone finally spoke.

“Itachi… your eyes…”

 Two dull red streaks ran beneath his eyes. They resembled tears but they were red. She recalled seeing something similar when she’d first rescued him. Did it have anything to do with those eye techniques? Was the jutsu really so detrimental that it made his eyes  _bleed_?

Before she could evaluate further, the Uchiha hastily ran his hand across the area in an attempt to wipe whatever it was away. But, after discovering the liquid was dried, he turned to her with a less blank expression than before.

“I’m fine.” The markings below his eyes begged to differ. “Are you alright?”

Akira did her best to smile genuinely. “I’ll live.” The grin faded after a second or two. “Itachi… you’re eyes… I… I didn’t do it properly—”

“I know.”

“We could—”

“No. I refuse to put you through that again.”

“I—”

“What?”

Akira buried her face in her hands. “I’m sorry.”

He didn’t hug her this time. A part of her yearned for him to, which surprised her. Why did she want Itachi to touch her? Why hadn’t she wanted to move away from him?

Akira’s thoughts were in a jumble.

Why had she felt secure and protected in his arms?

“You should rest,” Itachi stated. “Going to bed early would be a good idea for you.”

She nodded. Her voice was pinched as she said, “Okay.”

Then, as if nothing had happened, Itachi left. She heard a few doors open and close, and then she heard him unlock the front door and step outside.

Another late night walk? She would never understand why he liked doing that.

The rest of the night was blur. The next thing Akira knew, she was on the couch of her study. The lights were turned out, and she was attempting to fall asleep. Itachi wasn‘t back yet, but, after what her “brilliant” idea had just put them both through, she didn’t blame him. To be honest, she wouldn’t be surprised if he left altogether.

Hours passed before his chakra presence returned to the household, although Akira didn’t bother to look at her clock to see the actual time. It was a relief, but it couldn’t distract her from the mental torment.

It was amazing how much she had managed to repress over these past eight years, like the people of her previous village and her parents killers—but it was all coming back now. Oddly enough, the only thing she couldn’t remember was how she’d gotten here.

The image of a preteen Itachi flashed through her head.

It didn’t make any sense for him to be in there. Why had she seen that? Had it been real? If so, had that really been Itachi? Genjutsu or not, everything she’d seen in that world had actually happened.

It was almost like the memory of her parents’ demise had been pulled out of her subconscious and then the other villagers’ deaths added to it. She’d known them all—all of them except Itachi.

Akira tried to think of a reasonable explanation, but, no matter how much she pondered, she only managed to confound herself all the more. But, with her mind preoccupied, the Hyuuga girl finally relaxed enough to fall into a dreamless sleep. Even the faint drizzle of rain on the rooftop failed to wake her.

Immediately, anyway.

-

Akira awoke with a jolt as a bolt of thunder sounded, yanking her from the silent world of slumber. Darkness surrounded her, and the only light came from a small window in the far wall of the room.

“I should be getting back to sleep,” Akira murmured drowsily, rolling over to her side as she adjusted the thin blanket covering her figure. Her eyes had only just begun to close when they quickly reopened thanks to another rumble followed by a loud  _boom_.

“Damn thunder.” She would never be able to sleep if that kept up.

Returning to her back, Akira kept her eyes open and mindlessly stared at the ceiling. Normally, the pitter-patter of raindrops would be soothing to her, but not tonight—after all, it had been raining that night.

_Why am I still thinking about that? It was just an illusion._  Akira turned back onto her side and cupped her hands over her ears. The images of her parents being cut down before her kept playing over and over again. It was like the hanabi festival gone wrong. She just couldn’t get the memory out of her head, and the rain only succeeded in reminding her.

“I should go splash some cold water on my face.” Maybe it’d clear her head  _and_  make her stop talking to herself.

One problem: the bathroom was in her room. Where  _Itachi_  slept.

It almost made her stop.

“I’ll just be quiet,” Akira decided, peeling off the blanket from her legs before shakily rising to her feet.

She crept into the hallway. It was dark, and she could just barely distinguish the door leading to her bedroom. It wasn‘t far; she should be able to make it without tripping over anything.

And that she did. Akira reached the bedroom without a problem.

Now, she could only hope that she could make it to the bathroom without waking Itachi. Akira tentatively rubbed her throat. Nothing pleasant ever happened when she did that.

-

Itachi sprang into a sitting position, creaking the bed beneath him. A cold sweat covered his body and his breathing heaved. Worse yet, his limbs were tangled in the covers.

_Dammit._  Another nightmare. No surprise there.

He had never been a heavy sleeper. As a child, even the slightest disturbance would wake him. Although with the dreams he had, Itachi was not complaining.

Another question arose in his mind: what had woken him up? It couldn’t have been the rain.

Itachi scanned the room, his sharingan activated. It was sad, really. He’d only been half blind again for a few hours, and he already missed being able to see.

Even so, a chakra presence appeared on his radar. An intruder?

Itachi froze, not making a sound. Whoever it was, they were in the bathroom.

Quietly getting out of bed, Itachi ventured toward the bathroom, ready for a fight if necessary. Cautiously, he peered through a crack in the door.

He could fully see them now. They were leaning over the sink, and Itachi could hear water running. To be honest, he was surprised they didn’t hear him. Their features weren’t exactly easy to make out, but he could tell one thing: this figure had long hair—long  _blonde_  hair…

“Akira?” What was she doing up at this hour?

Itachi mentally sighed. It was almost laughable how he’d overreacted.

She jumped, most likely because she hadn’t heard him coming. Her head whipped in his direction, and, for a second, her eyes were full of fear. She seemed to brush it off by forcing her face into a smile.

“Oh, Itachi?” Her expression was glaringly fake. “Sorry, did I wake you?”

“Hn.” Itachi attempted to make eye contact with the girl, but she looked away.

The action set off a warning signal in his mind.

Something was wrong. Akira was scared. Could she still not be completely over the afternoon’s experience?

The next clap of thunder answered his question. Akira didn’t just jump this time. Well, technically she did. To be exact, she jumped forward and hugged him.

He had not been expecting that. But, once again, Itachi didn’t push her away. Most people were hospitalized  _if_  they lived through Tsukuyomi with their sanity intact. He should give her credit for still being sane.

While Akira quivered, Itachi’s hand slowly found their way back around her shoulders. Oddly enough, it seemed to calm her. Her hair was down this time, and, before Itachi knew it, his fingers were tangled in the silky blonde strands.

Another clap of thunder sounded, and Itachi felt Akira wince. She wasn’t crying, but she looked very close to doing so. Her next request didn’t cease to surprise him.

“Can I sleep here tonight?” Caught off guard could only begin to describe his emotions, but her tone was pleading. “Please.”

Her grip around him slackened and Itachi allowed her to pull away. He mentally sighed again.

“Do as you please. This is your house.”

Her expression brightened ever so slightly. Itachi found it oddly relieving.

She held his arm the entire journey back to the bed, which was a grand total of about ten seconds. Itachi even went through the trouble of making sure she laid down first before pulling away from her grip. He had every intention of leaving the room until her hand found its way back to his arm.

“Don’t leave me alone,” she choked, and if he could see her eyes, Itachi had no doubt they would look just as pleading as her voice sounded.

Who was he to refuse? With a soft sigh of surrender, Itachi joined the Hyuuga girl on the bed.

The mattress was undoubtedly big enough for both of them, which made Itachi question why he suddenly felt so cramped. Maybe it was just his imagination, or the fact that Akira was gripping his arm tightly enough to cut off his circulation. Whichever it was, it should be all right for one night. They weren’t doing anything immoral.

Seconds after thinking that, he felt Akira press her body tightly against his back. Her breath lightly tickled the area between his shoulder blades, and he could feel  _everything_. He’d rolled over so that he was facing away from her, but even with his attempt at modesty, this girl still clung to him.

Neither of them spoke. Itachi didn’t like physical contact, but like he’d said before…

It was only for one night.

Akira didn’t know what possessed her to act the way she was. She honestly didn’t. All she knew was that she didn’t want to be alone, and if that meant sleeping in the same room, even the same  _bed_ , as Itachi for the night, so be it.

He was being oddly cooperative. She’d expected him to put up more of a fight against her crazy request, but he hadn’t, and she couldn’t put her appreciation for that into words.

Better yet, from the moment she’d hugged him that sense of security had been returned to her. Merely feeling his presence calmed her.

She didn’t know how, but suddenly she felt positive that her memory of that night had been accurate. She couldn’t explain why, but she was sure of it. Itachi had been the one to find her, the one to bring her this village. He was the reason she was still alive today.

Another clap of thunder rang out, but, this time, Akira didn’t move. She simply buried her face in the Uchiha’s back, contently breathing in his therapeutic scent.

With her lips formed in a smile, the Hyuuga girl slipped into unconsciousness almost immediately, Itachi following close behind.

Akira slept soundly, safe and warm beside her savior, but, little did she know, the same went for Itachi. At least for that night, not a single nightmare plagued his sleep.


	12. Chapter 12

Itachi awoke that morning to the warmth of sunlight shining on his closed eyelids. The Uchiha sleepily rubbed his eyes. His hand touched something odd as he put it down, and it definitely wasn’t bed sheets.

His dark eyes shot open, and what they saw was quite a sight to behold.

Hyuuga Akira’s peaceful sleeping face lay centimeters away from his, her breath fanning his cheeks. For some reason, Itachi wanted to half-smile, but, after a mental slap in the face, he regained his senses.

After retracting his hand from its incriminating position around Akira’s waist, Itachi got out of bed as quickly and quietly as possible. The slumbering Hyuuga girl didn’t stir once.

_What the hell was that?_ Itachi wondered as he slipped out of the room. Yesterday blurred. He recalled most everything, but it felt like a dream.

His body protested the sudden lack of heat as he strode down the chilled hallway, but Itachi ignored the imminent shivering. It had been a long time since he’d experienced physical contact like that. Oddly enough, after Akira’s Tsukuyomi experience yesterday, his lost eyesight hadn’t been the foremost thing on his mind—Akira had.

It had actually pained him enough to see her so hysterical that he found himself feeling guilty. It didn’t make sense. He’d given her fair warning, and she‘d gone through with her plans, regardless. Tsukuyomi was Akira’s consequence for underestimating the power of the sharingan.

But why had guilt slipped its way into his emotions?

Perhaps sleeping in the same room with her had been a little overboard to simply ease a guilty conscience, but, whether Itachi liked it or not, his presence had calmed her. She’d needed something—someone—to hold onto. He’d simply happened to be there.

As long as she was fine now, he didn’t regret the previous night. After all, it had been a long time since someone turned to him for comfort. A little over seven years, to be exact.

_Rain pattered against the glass of Itachi’s window as the storm raged outside. It rarely rained here in Konohagakure, but when it did, it never failed to keep him awake. Although most people found the sound soothing, Itachi had fought many a battle in the rain._

_It was difficult to blot out the images of blood and carnage from his head, and even when Itachi did manage to fall asleep, the nightmares were no different. But such was the life of Konoha’s youngest ANBU captain. Unfortunately, it was inevitable._

_A soft rumble rang out, warning the Uchiha of the lightning to come. A flash briefly lit up the area before a resounding_ boom _followed, shaking seemingly everything in the room save for the Uchiha with nerves of steel._

_Itachi lay back on the pillows of his bed and blankly stared up at the dark ceiling. Insomnia sucked. But, only seconds after thinking this, the soft thump of footsteps caught Itachi’s attention._

_Any normal person would remain deaf to such an acute noise, but such was Itachi’s training, and he was far from normal. The Uchiha’s eyes flashed crimson as he quickly surveyed the room, searching for chakra presences._

_A soft smile spread across Itachi’s lips at what he found._

_Standing there at his doorway and quivering in fear was his eight-year-old brother. Clutched in the boy’s arms were a fluffy pillow and his favorite stuffed dinosaur._

_Itachi sighed and sat up to face his intruder._

_“What are you doing here, Sasuke?”_

_The younger Uchiha cringed and turned away, a slight tinge of pink of his cheeks. Why had he even bothered asking? The boy’s intent was obvious._

_Itachi ran a hand through his loose raven locks and turned back to his brother._

_“Can’t you just go to Tou-san and Kaa-san’s room?” Itachi wasn’t surprised. The kid was only eight years old. Of course he would be scared of a thunderstorm, even if it couldn’t hurt him. Admittedly it was for different reasons, but Itachi had and still suffered from similar symptoms._

_Sasuke shook his head and pouted. “Tousan will just yell at me. Besides, Nii-san’s bed isn’t so lumpy!”_

_Itachi didn’t reply immediately. That spoiled child. Always used to getting what he wanted._

_In all honesty, Itachi blamed their mother‘s overly compassionate nature toward her favorite child. But, come to think of it, their father and his secret ways of doting on the eight-year-old were technically no better._

_Another rumble shook the room, making Sasuke turn to him with wide, fearful eyes_ —the _eyes of an innocent child._

_Itachi sighed again. With a face like that, how could he say no?_

_“Fine. Just for tonight.” That was all Sasuke needed. He scurried over to Itachi’s bed just as the next clap of thunder crackled._

_After lifting up the covers so that his brother could crawl in with him, Itachi felt a sharp pang of cold as his skin made contact with Sasuke’s._

_“Do you have enough covers in your room, Sasuke?” Itachi inquired._

_The eight-year-old nodded as he cuddled closer to his brother’s warmth. Itachi feel another pang of cold. “Mhm. Why?”_

_“Your skin is freezing.” Part of it was his concern for the boy’s health. The other half was because of the hell their mother would put him through if Sasuke got sick._

_“I was standing in the hallway… for a while,” Sasuke admitted quietly. “I was scared that Niisan would tell me to go back to bed. Like Tousan did last time…”_

_The hesitance in Sasuke’s voice pulled at Itachi’s heartstrings. How could their father be so cruel to such a young child?_

_Itachi paused._

_Then again, he was living proof of their father‘s negligence. If anything, merely dismissing Sasuke with a few curt words was kind compared to some of the things Itachi had experienced from the man._

_“I’d never refuse you for such a thing, Sasuke.”_

_The younger Uchiha completely relaxed at that sentence. He looked up at his brother with sparkling eyes of admiration._

_“Really?” he squeaked._

_Itachi smiled softly and nodded, bringing up his hand to lightly poke his brother’s forehead._

_“Yeah.” Itachi promised, sliding his hand to cup the back of Sasuke’s head while the boy buried his face in Itachi’s chest. Sasuke’s skin was warmer now, and he finally seemed to be calming down enough to feel tired._

_“I’ll never leave you alone, Sasuke,” Itachi whispered once he was positive his brother was unconscious. Then, after one more clap of thunder, Itachi closed his eyes and fell asleep._

_-_

Itachi’s sharingan blazed as he executed the hand signs for his fire jutsu. Then, after taking a quick but deep gulp of air, he breathed out the giant fireball of his Goukakyuu no jutsu.

The glowing tongues flared and danced gracefully across the glassy surface of the lake in front of him before evaporating into thin air.

Itachi coughed a few times afterwards, attempting to ignore the growing irritation in his chest. Training usually succeeded in clearing his mind, but such was not the case today. Two or three jutsus in and he was already feeling it.

He began the hand signs for his next jutsu, but a paroxysm of coughs cut him short, thus beginning a routine he was growing quite accustomed to.

Thirty seconds later, Itachi knelt on the ground, his entire palm splattered in blood. Twin crimson streaks trailed down the sides of his mouth as the tangy taste of iron burned vehemently on his taste buds.

The Uchiha wanted to scream. The coughing was growing more frequent, and, each and every time, and the pain worsened. This was becoming unbearable, even for him.

-

Akira rolled onto her side, just beginning to wake up. She instinctively pressed a pillow over her head, attempting to blot out the obnoxious chirping of birds.

That was odd; she felt warm and comfortable. She  _never_  felt warm and comfortable on the couch. To be honest, it felt like she…

The Hyuuga girl slowly blinked open her eyes. Sure enough, she was lying in a bed. Her  _own_  bed. She was in her room.

_I’ve been waking up in the strangest places lately._   _First at the dining room table and now here._ She seriously needed more sleep. Maybe that way she’d actually remember howshe got to these places.

Turning onto her stomach, Akira buried her face in the nearest pillow. Despite the physical comfort, she felt horrible. Not sick, just… dead. The mental trauma from yesterday was mostly gone, but Akira couldn’t help but feel a bit embarrassed.

To be honest, now that she thought about it, she was surprised Itachi hadn’t gotten the wrong idea about her request yesterday. Most men jumped at the idea of having a woman sleep in the same bed as them, especially a vulnerable one.

Itachi was definitely different from most men. He had a certain… code, that he followed. Morals, even. He didn’t go out of his way to overstep her boundaries, and she greatly appreciated that.

Akira glanced over at the empty space next to her.

Speaking of Itachi, he’d probably been up for a while now. Some days he awoke early, and others he slept in.

_So unpredictable._  Yeah, like yesterday. She never would have expected him to comfort her like that. Maybe Itachi really did have a soft side. It would certainly explain the rough exterior. From what she’d observed, most men didn’t like admitting they had feelings. After living with him for all this time, Akira felt like she was finally beginning to chip away at the Uchiha’s emotionless front and discover who he really was.

So far, Akira liked what she was finding.

Slowly sitting up and then stretching, Akira let out a hefty yawn before plopping back onto the mattress. It felt good to lie in her own bed again. It also helped her sort through her thoughts. Unsurprisingly, most of them involved Itachi.

Thanks to her mistake, his eyesight had gone back to being dark and blurry. She had yet to see exactly how badly he had relapsed, but judging by the way he had spoken to her yesterday, it couldn’t be good. The least she could do was apologize. After all the things Itachi had put up with, he deserved so much more.

Sighing to herself, Akira turned her head to glance at the clock. What time was it, anyway?

Upon looking, the Hyuuga girl froze. This wasn’t good.

Throwing off the covers, Akira dashed toward her dresser, ignoring all the feelings of discomfort that followed. So much for a relaxing wake up.

After ripping off her pajamas and replacing them with her regular clothes in the fastest way possible, Akira completely neglected her hair and sped out of the bedroom.

_Dammit, dammit, dammit!_  It was almost eight o’clock! Shouldn’t Kaname and Eri have come? Maybe they’d forgotten… Or—

“Why the hurry?”

Akira skidded to stop just in time to prevent herself from colliding head first with a certain Uchiha. But, although she avoided slamming into him at a sprint, she still bumped into him.

“Itatatai…” Akira muttered, slowly backing away from Itachi. She spared a glance upward to see his expression. Somehow, he’d brought his arms up in time to catch her.

_Leave it to Itachi to have such fast reflexes._ But, as she backed away, a familiar scent filled her nostrils aside from Itachi’s usual aroma.

Iron. More specifically,  _blood_.

Akira quickly scanned the Uchiha with her eyes.

That was odd. No visible injuries. Then where was the smell coming from?

“Akira?” The Uchiha’s voice broke Akira from her thoughts.

“I’m going to be late for training!” Akira exclaimed, palming her forehead and thus regaining her thought process.

Itachi looked at her as if she had two heads. It unnerved her enough to say something.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“It’s Saturday.”

“Eh?” Relief washed over the Hyuuga girl. Saturday? That meant she didn’t have—school…

“I guess that explains why Kaname and Eri didn’t come by,” Akira mumbled, shaking her head. She tried and failed to prevent the shades of red from blooming on her cheeks.

Itachi half-smiled at her. Then again, it was more of a smirk. Things were already awkward between them. That hadn’t helped, so why not add onto that awkwardness? It’d certainly save her the trouble of finding the right time to say this later on.

“Well then,” Akira began, “now that we’re both here, do you mind if I ask you something?”

“Hn.” His favorite one word answer. She’d have to translate that as a “yes.”

“I’ll be blunt then.” She paused. “What do you want me to do about your eyesight? It’s clearly relapsed thanks to yesterday’s…  _experience_ , and I’d like to know what you want me to do.”

He didn’t reply, and his eyes said nothing to her.

_Dammit…_  Maybe she shouldn’t have that so soon after waking up. After yesterday’s mess, Akira felt like she was walking on eggshells.

Finally, Itachi drew in a breath to speak.

“I’d prefer us to continue with your initial plan of multiple healing sessions in hopes of beating the rate of deterioration.”

“And? How long would you like to keep trying?”

“Until my sight returns to something I can function with. Something close to the stage we had it at should suffice.”

“What?” Akira couldn’t hide the surprise in her voice. “Are you sure?”

“There’s no use regretting the past if you cannot change it.”

“So… you don’t hate me for ruining your eyesight instead of helping it?” Akira regretted the words the second they left her mouth. She couldn’t believe she’d actually said that.

Oddly enough, Itachi didn’t seem the slightest bit offended. If anything, he looked amused.

“Some of the worst things are done with the best intentions,” he said simply. There was a certain note of knowing in his voice. It sounded like he talked from experience. “You had no intention to hurt me. Therefore I have no reason to hate you.”

Akira opened her mouth, but the words caught in her throat. Promptly closing her jaw, the Hyuuga girl just stood there. She couldn’t think of a reply, and his words didn‘t cease to surprise her.

“Now that that’s cleared up,” Itachi began, “shall we train? You could use it.”

“W-what? Are you sure—”

“ _Yes_.” His tone cut. Akira swallowed hard.

“Sounds great.” She smiled this time. She didn’t know why she smiled; she just wanted to. The fact that Itachi wasn’t angry at her had completely lifted her spirits. “Just let me finish getting ready first. I can make breakfast once we get back.”

Training went surprisingly well. She actually managed to leave without being too badly beaten. Itachi even mentioned, very indirectly of course, that her taijutsu was improving. They weren’t getting anywhere particularly fast with ninjutsu, but, for now, Akira didn’t mind—her taijutsu  _really_  needed help.

Nightfall came swiftly. Akira rushed to make dinner and then took the time for a subsequent healing session.

And Itachi was right—they were truly right back to where they’d started.

It amazed Akira that Itachi hadn’t lost faith in her. Everyone made mistakes, but her actions had proved far direr not only to herself, but especially to Itachi.

She did the best she could in one session. Not great, but certainly better.

What more could she do? If she worked diligently enough, she may be able to catch up to their former progress within a week, but would Itachi be willing to wait that long?

Pushing that thought aside, Akira inquired, “How is it?”

Itachi sat up and tentatively rubbed his eyes. “Better.”

“Well,” Akira paused mid-sentence to yawn, “I’m going to bed. Wake me if you need anything.”

Itachi walked off probably to do the same. Yawning again, Akira headed to the study where most of her things already resided. She quickly changed into pajamas and kicked Itachi out of the bathroom long enough to take care of her usual nighttime habits before heading back to the study.

Her eyes felt heavy, partly from chakra exhaustion and probably from physical overwork, too. Whatever the reason, she was quite ready to get some sleep. After turning off the light and collapsing onto the less-than-comfortable couch, Akira pulled a blanket over herself and finally succumbed to exhaustion.

-

The next thing Akira knew, she was standing in her living room in nearly complete darkness. Her only source of light, the gentle glow of the full moon, glistened back at her through the crystallized glass of her window. What was she even doing here? She couldn’t remember.

Scanning her surroundings, Akira found herself to be not alone. Another figure stood across the room, although, whoever it was, he looked somehow… menacing. Upon second glance, she noticed a weapon clutched in his left hand, more specifically a katana. Was it a burglar?

No, it wasn’t a burglar, it was—

“Itachi?” No, it couldn’t be. Those clothes—he was wearing the same outfit as when they’d first met in the woods, although it lacked the rips and tears. The scratched out headband and the black cloak with red clouds…

The katana he held was dripping. Akira sniffed the air, filling her lungs with the putrid odor of iron. Blood—his sword was dripping blood. But whose?

Akira staggered forward, heading toward the Uchiha, but midway her foot caught on a blunt object, stopping her short. But what? It couldn’t be the table. She looked down, and, upon doing so, it took every once of willpower she had not to scream.

It was a body.  _Kaname’s_  body…

Eyes wide, Akira could only gawk as she pivoted to examine the rest of the floor. Kaname wasn’t alone. Eri, Saito, Misaki, Kaede—all her friends, her teacher… even some of the other shinobi and a few of the villagers. Almost every one she knew was here, scattered on the floor and lying in puddles of their own blood.

Judging by the wounds, a katana had slain them all.

Her gaze darted back to Itachi, who merely stood there, a familiar smirk on his face.

“No… impossible…” Akira whispered.

It couldn’t be—he couldn’t; he wouldn’t…

“You did this?!” Her only answer was a deepened smirk, which was enough of an answer in of itself. As if the bloody katana didn’t already proclaim enough.

Akira’s head spun and her vision blurred. No… Itachi was many things, but he wasn’t a murderer. Maybe he’d killed people, given his profession as a ninja, but she couldn’t see him taking a life in cold blood. He just wasn’t that kind of person.

She paused, rethinking her last sentence. Doubt filled her mind.

Was he?

With a silent scream, Akira jolted awake. Like after most nightmares, a cold sweat covered her body, gluing all nearby cloth to her clammy skin in a sticky mess. Her breath came out in short, intermittent gasps, and it took her a few seconds to actually catch it.

“What the hell,” Akira murmured, her eyes finally reverting back to their normal size.

She was really getting sick of the nightmares—first the one about her parents and now this. The Hyuuga girl shook her head. Life just wasn’t fair. But where had that one come from?

It had seemed so real, despite the ridiculous notion. Itachi murdering her friends? That would never happen.  _He's not capable of something like that._

What Akira truly didn’t like was the hesitation she felt after thinking that. She didn’t know entirely why, but something, possibly a deranged gut feeling, told her otherwise.

_I just need to splash some cold water on my face,_  Akira reasoned.  _I’m probably just tired after all the excitement today. There’s no way Itachi would do something like that._

Unfortunately, no matter how many times she repeated the phrase, something deep inside her disagreed.

Brushing those thoughts aside, Akira continued with her initial plan involving the cold water. Given, she needed the bathroom for that, but by now Itachi was probably used to her intruding in the middle of the night.

_Let’s just hope he doesn’t mistake me for some burglar and try to attack me again._ What was the worst that could happen?

Little did Akira know as she tip-toed out of the study at the ridiculous hour of two in the morning, she was about to yet again be shown just how wrong she could be.

_So far so good,_  Akira thought, slowly opening the door to her bedroom. Peering toward the bed, she found it to be motionless, indicating Itachi‘s slumber.

The Hyuuga girl returned her attention to the bathroom. Although, as she crept closer, apprehension flooded through her system. Something was off, but what?

One more glance at the bed told her enough—it was empty.

_Itachi using the bathroom isn’t anything out of the ordinary,_  Akira reasoned, briefly pausing to assess the situation. That being said, why did she still feel like something was about to go terribly wrong?

A muffled hacking sound broke the silence. It sounded repressed and scratchy—someone was coughing. Hard.

_Itachi_? Akira crept closer to the bathroom, the most likely source of the noise. The lights were off, but someone was definitely in there.

Pressing her ear to the door, Akira heard more hacking sounds, each of them loud and clear. Her hand instinctively closed around the handle, but she didn’t turn quite yet. Something inside her hesitated.

Was it morally right for her to barge into the bathroom when she knew Itachi was in there? Couldn’t she just knock?

_But if something’s wrong, he’ll just cover it up. If I knock, it’ll give him too much time to react and I’ll never know the whole truth!_

This much was true. Everything about Itachi she’d had to discover the hard way. Rarely ever did he tell her something that she didn’t have to dig for, no matter how important or trivial. From his love of sweets to his imminent blindness, she‘d discovered both of these completely by accident. That being said, how was this situation any different?

Another string of coughs rang out, and that was all it took. Her concern for the Uchiha was killing her, and, at the moment, she didn’t care if he hated her for this.

_I'd rather ask for forgiveness than permission, anyway._

The door clicked as she turned the knob, and another throat-wrenching cough joined the creak of the opening door. Oddly enough, Itachi didn’t turn around. It was undoubtedly him, because that stance and those broad shoulders were unmistakable, but why was he still facing the sink?

Somehow, Akira mustered the courage to speak first.

“Itachi—”

“What are you doing here?”

She jumped at the spite in his tone. Despite his heaving shoulders, his voice was surprisingly even. He was definitely out of breath, but what else was he hiding by not facing her?

“Itachi, I live here,” she replied calmly, at which Akira swore she heard him scoff. She waited a moment before speaking again. “What’s going on?”

No reply. Never a good sign.

Squinting, Akira attempted to catch a glimpse of him in the bathroom mirror above the sink he leaned over. Upon doing so, she noticed tiny red dots staining the glassy surface in several places. And, upon further scrutiny, she detected more splotches marring Itachi’s blurred reflection. A familiar tangy iron scent lingered in the air.

Was that blood? Could she be seeing things?

“Itachi?” His breathing was back to normal now, but even after she called his name again, he still didn’t budge. “Turn around.” Her eyebrows knitted sympathetically as she added, “Please.”

Finally, he obeyed her, and the familiar scent of iron filled her nostrils more strongly than before. That reflection in the mirror had been no illusion.

His eyes were dead, black, and tired, but his mouth… streams of crimson ran down either side, and his entire right hand was covered in a sticky red stain.

There was no denying it. Itachi had been coughing up blood.


	13. Chapter 13

Itachi grimaced, trying to smother the shame he felt. All he could think was, _Why now?_

What in Kami‘s good name had driven Akira to come here at this hour of night? Didn’t she already know enough about him? His throat ached and his lungs burned, but what hurt most at the moment was his pride.

And those eyes—those overwhelming, sympathetic eyes that made him feel like the most pathetic creature on earth. Even with his poor vision, Itachi could tell.

Seeing no point in trying to hide any longer, he turned around. Dead-eyed and covered in blood, he stared back at her, not knowing what to say. As much as he hated to admit it, his mind was blank. He couldn’t use the excuse of being poisoned anymore. He knew the longer he stayed, the stronger the chance of her discovering this.

And he’d been right.

“What the hell is going on?” Figures that’d be the first phrase out of her mouth. Exhaling deeply, Itachi attempted to calm himself as much as possible before responding.

“I don’t know, Akira.”

“What do you mean you don’t know?” she retorted. “You’re coughing up blood! How the hell do you not know?!”

Another irritation formed at the base of his lungs and near the front of his throat. Despite the discomfort, Itachi did his best to swallow and continue speaking.

How was he supposed to explain this to her?

“I mean,” he began through gritted teeth, “I have no idea the name or cause.”

“Itachi…” His name came out as more of a groan as Akira palmed her forehead and ran her fingers down her face in frustration. “What else are you hiding from me?”

Itachi didn’t reply. Unfortunately, that list was endless.

“How long has this been going on?”

“Since long before I came here.”

“So that one time I saw you cough up blood when we were training… that wasn’t from the poison?”

“No.”

Another groan. “Itachi…” Akira shook her head. “Why didn’t you just tell me?”

The Uchiha held back a sigh, knowing part of it was pride. The other, well… He didn’t entirely know.

“Okay, so this… _illness_ you have. What do you know about it?”

“The symptoms involve fevers, exhaustion, and coughing up blood. As for the root of the problem, there are only theories.”

“Which are?”

“More than likely, it’s related to the eye techniques I use.”

“Eye techniques?” she echoed. “How?”

“It’s only a theory, but it mostly happens after I use my more powerful techniques. Tsukuyomi is only the beginning of what I can do.”

“These techniques put that much of a strain on your body?” He nodded. “Then why use them? If it’s hurting you, hell, even blinding you, find something else!”

“I can’t.”

“And why not?”

“Because…” he trailed off. How could he possible expect her to understand? “I need to use them to survive.”

She scoffed, crossing her arms. “I can see how well that’s working out for you.”

“My occupation demands it, Akira.”

“Then switch jobs! It’s not that hard!”

“Yes, it is!”

“Oh really? Is being a ninja that important to you that you’ll sacrifice your health, your sight, and Kami only knows what else to do it?”

Itachi sighed, momentarily not believing how upset this was making him.

“It’s not the job, Akira. I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you any more.”

He couldn’t tell her about Sasuke. It wasn’t her place to know. He’d never told another soul about that mission, even though he relieved it nearly every night in his nightmares. A part of him yearned to tell someone and possibly make his burden lighter, but he couldn’t.

Not only was it his duty, but he didn’t deserve the comfort.

“Then…” Akira faulted. She looked away and then back again. Oddly enough, Itachi had little difficulty maintaining eye contact. For a moment, he almost forgot that he was still covered in blood. “Will you at least let me help you?”

Of all the things she could have said, he hadn’t expected that.

“What?” Unable to cloak his surprise, Itachi spoke the only word that came to mind.

_What the hell is she thinking?_

“Let’s start with the basics then: have you checked this with any other healers?”

“None of them could ever do anything.”

“This is sounding eerily similar to what happened with your eyesight.”

“The two are related.”

“Do you want me to help you?”

“I don’t see what you could possibly do.”

“Well…” Akira paused to yank the nearest hand towel off its hook. Then, after turning on the sink and running the linen under cold water, she turned off the faucet and extended the now damp towel to him. “You could start by getting cleaned up. The blood on your face is beginning to dry.”

Itachi reached out to take the linen from her, but his arm stopped midway as a familiar burning reignited in his chest. Bile formed in the back of his throat. Before he could grab the linen, one hand flew to his chest, and the other quickly retracted to cover his mouth.

He started coughing again, and there was no repressing it this time.

Everything went black. He was still conscious, he just couldn’t see.

Itachi fell forward, fully expecting to slam full force into the concrete of Akira’s bathroom floor. But, instead, he landed on something softer. It was solid, but definitively not concrete. It felt far too soft by comparison and much too warm.

As he continued coughing, a pair of arms enclosed around his neck in one of the warmest embraces he’d ever felt. He finally realized what he’d landed on.

It was Akira’s shoulder, and whatever outfit she was wearing, he was getting blood on it. By the time he finally managed to calm down again, his eyesight was still gone. Stars danced before his vision, and something cool and soft gently slid across his cheek, across his mouth, and onto his other cheek.

Itachi recognized the material as the towel Akira tried to hand him earlier. She was wiping the blood off for him. His ego was certainly taking a lot of bruises tonight.

Unable to move anymore, Itachi lay there heaving, desperately trying to catch his breath while Akira held him. As his vision refocused, Itachi felt Akira’s hands slowly slide down to his chest, right over his lungs, as she began pouring healing chakra into the area.

As minute after minute ebbed away, so did the pain. Whether Itachi wanted to admit it or not, she was helping.

“Any better?” Akira murmured.

Itachi nodded, not wanting his voice to shake should he try speaking.

“Just go to bed, Itachi,” Akira said, brushing the damp hair out of his eyes. “We’ll talk more tomorrow.”

-

Akira walked to Kaede’s two days later with a slight drag in her step, reflecting her current mood. She and Itachi had spent all of Sunday avoiding each other, not even bothering to reconviene for meals. Today, left with little choice of seeing eachother, breakfast had gone awkwardly enough. She left without saying goodbye, and he didn’t bother to acknowledge her leaving. She even met up with Kaname and Eri midway rather than allowing them to drop by her house.

Upon seeing her friends, she faked a smile, left out any mentions of Itachi and walked to Kaede’s tower, talking pointlessly. Their lesson went the same as always. She followed the textbooks, practiced her healing on fish and birds. Assignments were given and half-breathed moans followed, mainly from Kaname. In the least, nothing went _wrong_.

The lesson ended, finally. What had once been a joy to her was now a monotony, partially from constant failure of application and partially sleep-depravation. Upon being dismissed, she took a few seconds and just sat there, trying to recall facts from the lesson.

Her mind blanked. All she could really think about was Itachi.

“Akira?” Eri’s sweet tone broke her out of her thoughts. Akira blinked and looked up at her from her desk. “Are you coming? We‘re leaving now.”

Akira smiled back as best she could. “I have a few questions for Kaede-sensei. I’ll catch up with you guys.” Her friends left. She breathed a mental sigh of relief. Now came the hard part.

“Kaede-sensei?” The old woman turned around. She had been returning a stack of books to her desk, the ones used in today’s lesson. The mahogany surface obscured with papers shook as she plunked down the stack of reading materials.

“Yes, Akira?”

“I have some questions.”

“On today’s lesson?”

“No, actually.”

Kaede walked to her desk chair, sat down, turned around and waited until Akira looked her in the eye again. “On what then, Akira?”

“I need help treating a disease.”

“For you?”

“No!” Akira said immediately, but soon regretted her outburst. “No… if it were you, would know, I’m sure.”

“I thought so.” Kaede nodded, silently relieved that her deduction skills had not deteriorated. She folded her hands directly in front of her, the only paper-free section on the desk. “Who then?”

“My friend…”

“What is this friend sick with?”

“I don’t know. That’s the thing. And neither does he.”

“He?” Kaede raised an eyebrow as Akira tried to ignore the raging fire coming to life on her cheeks.

 _Not this again,_ she thought, annoyed. She was not up for explaining this whole story again. “Yes. A friend.”

“Then bring him in.”

“I can’t. Or rather… he won’t. But he needs help. I…” she trailed off. She didn’t want to say what she was going to say next, but she had to. “I think he’s dying.”

“What are his symptoms then?”

“As far as I know, extreme headaches, exhaustion, coughing up blood, fevers, and loss of eyesight.”

“Complete blindness?”

“Close to it,” Akira mustered. _I think…_

“What treatments have you done so far for this… friend?”

“Just treating his eyesight. Trying to restore it.”

“Any improvement?”

“It doesn’t stick much,” Akira admitted. “But it is improving. Slightly.”

What was she thinking? Kaede would never agree to help her on such vague information! The unknown poison was one thing, the book on eyesight was another, but _this_? Now she was just being stupid.

Her teacher’s next question did not surprise her.

“Why did you not tell me you were treating someone?”

She’d prepared an answer for this. Now she could only pray that it came out right.

“This friend of mine… his name is Itachi.” She could at least tell this much right? It was just a first name, albeit an odd one. “He’s very sick, but he refuses to go to doctors. He’s a complete recluse!”

“And you’re the only one he’ll allow to help him?”

“Even that took some serious prodding,” Akira muttered.

“Pardon?”

“Essentially yes,” Akira recovered, smiling. “So far, everything‘s gone fine,” _yeah, that’s a lie,_ “but now it’s just getting too complicated for me to handle alone.”

Kaede paused, thinking. “Do you have any written information to offer me? Studies? Pictures?”

It was everything Akira could do not to facially betray her relief, although her shoulders relaxed. Kaede would help her—Kaede, who was like a mother to her after her parents had been taken from her so many years ago.

“Not with me,” Akira admitted, “I needed to be sure you were willing to help me on this _extra-curricular_ project first. Everything I have on this is at home.”

“I do hope you’re not just trying to earn bonus points.” Kaede smirked slightly.

Akira smiled back. “No. Just trying to use what I know to help someone.”

“Healing physical wounds is one thing. Long-term illnesses is another.”

“I know.”

Kaede gazed at her scrutinizingly. Akira had never felt so self-conscious in all her life. It felt like an eternity before the middle-aged woman finally spoke.

“Akira?”

“Yes…?”

“I’m proud of you,” she said, smiling softly.

Akira blinked in confusion. “What for?”

“Have you ever wondered why I always refused to allow you in the darker corridors of the hospitals and restricted you to easier tasks and missions?

Akira hesitated, not wanting to speak out of turn.

“Yes…” she said hesitantly. That had been half her motivation in taking in Itachi. Just to prove it to herself that she could.

“When you first arrived at this village,” Kaede began, “you were a sniveling ten-year-old who had just watched her village be slaughtered. The mere sight of blood terrified you and sent you into screaming fits.”

“I recall…”

“But, half a year later, you came to me requesting that I train you as a ninja, and eventually as my own healing pupil. Can you imagine my surprise at the change?”

“I asked if I could train under you once I finished the academy, yes…” Akira said wistfully. “Yes, a good memory, but what’s it got to do with anything?”

“The reason I ‘kept you out of the loop,’ so to speak, was to protect you. I did not want to see that sniveling ten-year-old return.

“Kaede-sensei! It’s been seven years. I’ve trained faithfully, I’ve—”

“But you never asked me why.”

“I didn’t think it wise,” Akira murmured, looking at the ground.

“But look at you now.”

Her gaze returned to the village healer.

“You’re asking me questions. _Real_ questions, Akira. First you came to me with a poison, and, before you protest, yes, I know it was for someone and not just curiosity, and then you’re telling me about this boy that needs helping. You ask questions, Akira, intelligent questions, but never anything that specific.”

“Guess I can’t fool you then.” Akira smiled wryly.

“I’d imagine it’s the same now? For this person?”

Akira nodded. “Yes. I don’t need much, just the time to research and experiment and maybe a few pointers if it’s not too much trouble. I don’t want to screw this up.”

“No healer does,” Kaede replied calmly. “And Akira?”

“Yes?”

“If you keep up the good work, I may consider signing you up for more intensive clinicals and possibly recommending my brother to assign you more dangerous missions rather than just basic care and stocking shelves. However, this is not a promise. You must prove yourself as a healer first before anything escalates. Everyone must endure some variety of test, even Kaname and Eri. Like you, they have not been ready and unfortunately this village cannot afford to lose ninja unnecessarily.”

Akira fought to keep a straight face. She’d been dreaming of this change for years! And better yet, she hadn’t even planned it. She’d helped Itachi because she’d wanted to, not just out of a healer’s obligation, and now, despite her desired secrecy regarding the Uchiha being blown with yet another person (this made what, five now?), things were falling into place.

“Shall I pass the word onto them?”

“No, Akira. This must remain between us. Their tests may differ from yours because they are different people. But still, all of you have much to learn.”

“So… does this mean I can research now? And also begin my assessment?”

“Yes, child. Yes we can.”

A pregnant pause. Then, back to her regular humorous self, Kaede added, “Must be a very important friend if you’re willing to do so much for him.”

The blush returned, much to Akira’s chagrin. Talk about mood whiplash…

“Well, no one else will, so someone has to.” It was true. Itachi didn’t seem like the type to allow anyone close enough to help him. She used to think that everyone had at least someone they could rely on, but Itachi… he was just so cold. He never let anybody close. Not even her.

“I’ll need numerous sessions like this, just to research and experiment,” Akira added. “And really, if it’s too much trouble you can just forget it—”

“Akira,” Kaede cut off, her voice stern. Akira looked back at her sheepishly. “This isn’t just about tests. I did not become a healing nin to deny those in need.”

Akira looked away, and Kaede waited until she looked back to continue. The middle-aged woman leaned forward slightly as she all but whispered, “Even those I don’t know.”

-

Akira returned home, aware of her lateness. It was almost dinnertime, and Itachi would probably be wondering where she‘d been, if he bothered to ask.

The door creaked open as she whooshed inside, headed for the kitchen to start dinner. She didn’t sense Itachi’s presence. Maybe he hadn’t noticed her absence and was off on a walk or training or…

“Where have you been?”

She jumped, her hand flying away from the kitchen cabinet she’d been about to open.

“Researching,” she replied curtly, waiting a second before she returned her attention to the cabinet and retrieved the pot she had been looking for. She placed said pot on the stove and finally turned to face him.

“With Kaede?”

“Your point?”

He seemed to read her mind with his gaze.

“What did you tell her?”

Akira tried to sound innocent. “Why so defensive?”

“I never asked for your help with this.”

“I said we’d talk about it today. We’re talking now aren’t we?”

“I’ll ask again.” She felt Itachi lean in on her and although he wasn‘t touching her, his presence alone felt smothering. “What. Did. You. Tell. Her?”

“Nothing.” She looked away. “Nothing important.”

“Which was?”

“Just your symptoms.”

Judging by his ominous stare, he knew there was more.

She should be honest. Shinobi did enough lying as it was. “And your first name.”

“ _Why_?”

“Because, Itachi, I can’t do this alone. I need help. She’s the best healer in the village!” And I want to prove myself… she could probably leave that last part out.

“I never asked for your help with this,” he restated quietly.

“But you’ve accepted it thus far. What’s one more instance?”

“More of a hassle for you.”

“But it makes me stronger!”

Itachi stopped.

“You’re doing this to improve your healing ability?” His voice didn’t sound hurt. It just sounded dead.

“That’s not why I took you in at first,” Akira clarified.

“Then why did you? Why didn’t you just let me die in the woods?” He honestly seemed desperate, in his own Itachi way, for her honest reply, like he all wanted was an answer as to why he was still here.

Akira just smiled. “Because you needed help,” she said, as if it were the most obvious fact in the world. “I couldn’t, both as a healer and as a human being, leave you there to die.”

“Shinobi die all the time.” Itachi spoke with wisdom far beyond his years. The scars on his body were proof enough of that.

“I know.” Silence filled the air again. “So, just one more time, will you let me help you just because you need it?”

“You just told me you couldn’t do it alone.”

“I trust Kaede—”

“I don’t trust anybody,” Itachi cut off. “And certainly not your sensei.”

Akira waited a few more seconds before speaking.

“You don’t have to go in to see her. You just have to allow me run some tests and take her the results.”

“And take samples of my DNA for her to trace? I’ll pass.”

“But it could help you!” Akira insisted, tired of arguing with him. “Itachi, why do you always have to be so stubborn?” _And did I mention paranoid?_ “Why do you always seem so hell-bent on doing everything alone?”

Itachi opened his mouth but closed it again. Upon examination, he seemed physically tired, more specifically, tired of living. This man was only two years her senior. So why then did he seem so old, all of the sudden?

-

Itachi stared back at the girl with determination burning in her lavender eyes. The same determination as when he’d seen her work, train, and especially as she strove to heal his eyesight. But one thing, with all his intelligence, did not make sense to him. Why him? Why was she so intent on helping _him_?

The pros of accepting her help included a potentially increased lifespan. In the least, Itachi knew he didn’t have more than a year left, which was not long at all considering everything he had yet to accomplish. He at least had a chance, and, despite previous setbacks, she had done much to help his eyesight.

The cons included potentially being tracked or worse yet captured in his weakening state due to leaving behind physical evidence and now with more than just one person. It was risky enough for him to stay this long in one place and especially with an ignorant girl that seemed to know so little about how the shinobi world truly worked.

But, despite being ignorant, she’d sacrificed her time, her money, her resources, and what even seemed like her friends for him. And Itachi supposed what he wanted to tell her was just—just, that he wasn’t worth it.

But Sasuke was.

“I will accept your assistance once again,” Itachi finally said, instantaneously brightening Akira’s expression. “I do admit that you have gotten stronger both in your offensive and defensive ninja training and your medical abilities as well.”

“And…?” Akira sensed that he was not done.

“And, let’s face it; you still have much to learn with your various types of jutsu.”

Fists clenched, Akira stared determinedly into his coal-colored orbs. “I promise I won’t let you down, Itachi! Thank you!”

 _Thank you?_ Itachi just shook his head.

“It should be I that is thanking you.”


	14. Chapter 14

Akira walked to Kaede’s with a spring in her step, trying with great effort to hide her joy as she talked with Kaname and Eri. The sun shone brightly on the way to Kaede’s tower, giving the surrounding forest a vibrant glow to reflect Akira’s emotions.

She could not wait to begin researching with Kaede that afternoon. The only downside would be keeping this from Kaname and Eri, but not because she didn’t trust them. Rather, she’d made a promise to Itachi not to tell anyone else, and his trust was not something she wanted to lose.

Again, today’s lesson passed with relative ease, but this time Akira actually managed to retain more information with much of her defeatist attitude gone. She’d brought along all of her notes on Itachi, concealed in her shoulder bag behind her other school-related books, as well as a few extra tests she’d managed to run last night: a sketch of the current condition of Itachi’s lungs according to her byakugan and a blood sample, much to Itachi‘s chagrin.

“Staying late again today, Akira?” Eri inquired, gathering up her notes while Kaname did the same.

“Sorry, guess all this is just not making sense to me!” Akira laughed nervously. “See you later?”

“If you must,” Kaname said, her expression more suspicious than Akira would have liked. “Are you sure you’re alright?”

“Not to worry. See you guys tomorrow!”

“You didn’t tell them?” Kaede inquired once her teammates left.

Akira shook her head. “I promised my patient I wouldn’t. He was displeased enough to know you were helping me, which I appreciate by the way.”

“He sounds like a prideful man.”

Lavender eyes rolled. “You have no idea.”

-

Akira headed home that that evening around dinnertime, but the spring in her step was long gone. She needed to get home. She needed to talk to Itachi.

She discovered the Uchiha in the study reading some of her old textbooks on strategy and weaponry this time, topics in which he was definitely more knowledgeable than her. With a friendly wave, she made her presence known as she entered the room.

He sat in his usual manner near the edge of the sofa, despite being its only occupant. One leg rested sideways on the other with his hands positioned so that one was holding the book he read while the other rested on his right knee.

She knew he detected her, despite not looking up.

“How did it go today?” he inquired.

Akira stared back at him wordlessly.

Sensing the mood, Itachi closed the book and laid it aside before standing up to face her.

“Is it worse than expected?” he finally said. For once, he saw no point in being indirect.

Akira nodded.

“How much time do I have left?”

“A year at most, from what we can tell.”

Itachi silently stared, waiting for her to continue.

“We may be able to lengthen your time. Double it even.”

Appearing pleased with this much, Itachi inquired, albeit it dubiously, “Any chance at a complete recovery?”

“Not that we can see. I’m sorry.”

It took every ounce of self-control Akira had to keep her voice from cracking. Nonetheless, she tried to reassure, “It’s not set in stone, though. We could be mistaken or missing something or maybe—”

“Akira,” Itachi silenced her with a surprising gentleness to his voice. “It’s all right. I know.”

Biting her lip, Akira jumped forward and embraced him before she could think too hard and convince herself otherwise.

How was Itachi unfazed by all this?

It was one thing to die from wounds on a mission or in the midst of a fight, but this was a terminal illness. As tacky as it sounded, it just wasn’t fair.

“I don’t need forever, Akira,” Itachi murmured, and she felt the soft touch of Itachi’s arms surrounding her. “I just need a little more time than that.”

Akira smiled into Itachi shoulder, choking back her tears.

“Don’t give up yet, Itachi,” she murmured, “We’re not finished.”

From that day on, Akira ceased merely researching when she found the time. She returned to working tirelessly at producing Itachi’s new medicine. It was like the ordeal with his eyesight all over again, except this time a true matter of life and death. And she wanted to save him—she wanted to save him so badly.

Kaede-sensei again noted her sudden shift in attitude, remarking that Akira should really “Make up her mind” about whether this would work or not. Akira just smiled and kept reading as she made lists of potential new mixtures to try against the seal.

The after-class work lasted for the entirely of that week and into the next, but, even with her sensei's help, it was difficult. Nothing they did seemed to completely work, today was Friday and neither of them particularly wanted to work on this for another weekend.

Thankfully, her friends had stopped asking questions at this point. They probably assumed Kaede had resorted to privately tutoring her on the material, but Akira held some pride in how wrong they were.

"Akira, I'm going to the stock room for some extra supplies," Kaede stated, holding up one of the empty herb bottles. Akira sat at one of the desks in the lab, intently pouring over a chakra microscope. She offered a "Hn" of acknowledgement, but didn’t bother to look up as Kaede left the room.

_We're close. We have to be!_  They’d figured out that Itachi's disease was autoimmune, which explained why it wasn't contagious. For whatever reason, his white blood cells were attacking his lungs, and, like every disease out there, stress only made it worse. She and Kaede had collaborated on ingredients that helped slow the process, but if they wanted something to make a long-term difference, they needed something stronger.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Akira leaned away from the microscope and pushed back her chair.

They were definitely missing something, but what could possibly be strong enough to slow the effects of a rapidly progressing disease like this? The only thing that had seemed to help in the slightest when Itachi had been coughing was her healing chakra!

Akira paused. Her index finger brushed across her chin in a thinking pose.

_What a second..._ Was that even possible? Could it work?

Her left hand lit up with green healing chakra.

In the least, it was worth a shot.

-

“Itachi?” Akira tiptoed into the house, knowing how late it was. By now, it was customary for her to be home after dark, but it was past midnight.

She removed her shoes at the door and headed through the kitchen and dining room toward the hallway leading to her bedroom and the study.

_Maybe he’s asleep._ It would make sense, but where was he? She hadn’t seen him near the door.

“Akira?” a familiar deep voice sounded behind her. She turned around, knowing better than to ask where he’d been, and silently hoped the bags under her eyes weren’t too prominent.

“I’m back.” She offered a small wave and smiled tiredly.

“Awfully late.” He looked suspicious in his own Itachi-like way, but Akira held no qualms about where she’d been.

“We were packing capsules,” Akira stated. Itachi raised an eyebrow and, barely able to contain herself, Akira reached into the bag slung across her shoulder.

“As promised.” She grinned fully this time as she offered the Uchiha an opaque brown bottle with a pale cap.

Curious, Itachi unscrewed the lid to examine the capsules inside and, with a slight bend of his slender fingers, maneuvered one of the pills into the palm of his hand.

“Chakra?” Even with its encasement, the capsule glowed green.

“Mixed in with the other ingredients for extra strength,” she explained. “It’s mine.”

Although he didn’t say it, Itachi looked impressed. Replacing the pill back into the bottle, Itachi screwed the cap shut.

“That’s all we have for today, but Kaede-sensei and I should be putting together another bottle tomorrow, just in case something happens,” Akira added.

“Recommended dosage?”

“Just two a day. Morning and night, if you can manage it.”

He wasn’t smiling, but Akira knew Itachi was pleased. She’d upheld her end of the bargain, and now Itachi had the extra time he needed.

“Thank you, Akira.”

Her lips formed a playfully wry expression. “Careful. You’ve been saying that an awful lot lately.”

This time, he actually smiled back.

“So no hot, steamy romance yet?” Kaname remarked with a smirk, lightly elbowing Akira in the ribs as they walked to class the following morning. Three days had passed since Akira had given Itachi the medicine, and so far, he said it was helping.

By now, Akira had stopped blushing at her friends’ teasing and allowed herself a sigh instead.

“I don’t know what’s keeping him here now,” she admitted. “We’ll see.”

-

Itachi knew Akira was back when he heard a string of coughs break the silence of the formerly empty house.

After closing the book he’d been reading, Itachi got up to check on her. When he arrived in the kitchen, she was already starting dinner.

“Hey, Itachi,” she greeted. “How’s the medicine working today?”

“Fine,” he assured. “You asked me that this morning.”

“True. But it could change between then and now.” She was making soup. The pot had already been removed from the cabinet above the stove and she now alternated between the refrigerator and pantry to procure the necessary ingredients.

Just as she brought out two cans, she sneezed and then started coughing again, dropping both objects she had been holding.

Swiftly catching the cans before they hit the ground, Itachi replaced them on the counter and positioned a hand on her shoulder before she could do any more.

“It would be wise for you to rest.” By the look in her eye, he could tell she had a nasty headache, too. This morning her voice had sounded congested and by now it was much worse. All the late nights she’d endured researching for his sake were finally catching up with her.

“I’m fine,” she assured, knocking away his hand. “Besides, dinner won’t make itself, and this stuff takes a long time to make.”

She walked away to fetch something in the far pantry, but as she did so, her step wavered. Midway next stride, she faltered even more, and Itachi could tell she was about to faint.

“Akira!” Itachi rushed forward to catch her. She slumped against him, her back colliding with his shoulder before he gently lowered her to the floor.

Keeping one arm behind the Hyuuga girl’s back to steady her, Itachi used his free hand to check her temperature. Heat radiated from her skin to the back of his hand.

She coughed slightly, but her consciousness did not return.

Sensing the futility, Itachi positioned his free hand beneath the Hyuuga girl’s legs and hoisted her off the floor. He carried her into what was technically her room rather than the study, knowing she would be far more comfortable in her own bed rather than lying on a couch.

To help with the fever, Itachi retrieved a cloth from beneath the sink in Akira’s bathroom and ran it under cold water. He ventured back out into her room where she lay on the bed, still unconscious. Placing the cloth on her forehead, Itachi felt her temperature again and then took a seat near the edge of the bed and waited.

He waited a whole half an hour before she finally opened her eyes, blinked a few times, and sat up, the cloth on her forehead sliding down her face.

“Wha… what happened?” she stuttered, confused. She stared at the damp cloth in her lap.

“You fainted.”

“Dammit,” Akira swore and laid back down on the soft pillows, replacing the cloth on her forehead. She turned her head toward Itachi. “Did you carry me all the way here?”

He didn’t answer, but she knew. Her pale fingers brushed across the cloth on her forehead.

“Thanks,” she managed.

“You’re welcome,” he replied shortly. He remained unaccustomed to the concept of being thanked, although he was getting better at acknowledging it.

“Where did you learn to take care of a sick person?” Akira inquired, laughing at the irony of it all. “Usually our roles are reversed.”

“I did have a younger brother once,” he reminded, almost to himself. There were many times when Sasuke had been sick and Itachi had taken care of the boy since their parents were almost always busy. The same had been true during the boy’s infancy. He'd been especially careful not to let his brother wake up alone, as Itachi had been forced to do many times growing up.

“Oh, right,” Akira recalled as she tucked both her hands beneath the covers for extra warmth. “He must have been a very lucky brother.”

“Not entirely.” With that, Itachi stood up to leave the room. “You need your rest, Akira.” And he didn’t want to talk about Sasuke anymore.

“Fine,” Akira mumbled, closing her eyes. She coughed a few more times.

Despite it being afternoon, Akira did not wake up until much later that evening, and, by then, she merely glanced at the time, looked out the window, and went back to sleep.

The following day, Itachi was the one to explain to Akira’s friends that she was ill and would not be attending classes. Her friends nodded in understanding and Kaname made sure to demand that he “Take good care of her!” while they were away.

“She just needs rest.” He hoped.

Two days later, she was well enough to attempt going to classes, and she returned later that afternoon looking tired, but not faint. The most she had left was a minor headache and a stubborn cough.

“You should really take some cough medicine,” Itachi remarked as she hacked another string of throat-retching coughs. She glared at him. “It may help.”

“Don’t have any,” she replied curtly. “I don’t get colds very often.”

“Hn.” That was certainly odd. This girl had more plants and herbs than he could count, but no cough medicine?

“I suppose Kaname and Eri could get me some, but I need to go— _cough cough_ —grocery shopping anyway,” she continued, not skipping a beat.

“Right this moment?”

“I’m— _cough cough_ —well enough!” she countered.

“Right.”

“Well, then what do you suggest? We’re out of soy sauce, shampoo, and probably a few other things I’m not remembering.”

“You’re in no condition to go anywhere, Akira.”

“Then why don’t you come with me?” she suggested. “You haven’t seen the village since the hanabi festival.”

Itachi hesitated. Would it really be wise to show his face in public again? He thought back to Akira fainting, and the slight, momentary panic he had felt. And the coughing—he knew only too well what it felt like to cough uncontrollably.

But what if someone recognized him? Was he willing to risk Akira’s safety for that?

“Fine. As long as we’re not too long.” He hoped not to regret this. But how mistaken he was.

The air of the Whirlpool Village’s market was cool and crisp, smelling of restaurant food and autumn leaves.

_I’ve been here over a month,_  Itachi realized. For any normal person it wasn’t long, but for him, S ranked criminal and ninja extraordinaire, to remain in one place for that long was unfathomable.

Despite her cold, Akira walked around just fine. She bought things here and there from this stand and that stand, using a list as accountability. At the moment, he was just along for the ride.

“Itachi!” Akira’s voice broke him out of his thoughts. She stood a good ten yards away waving her arms. His way filled with a bustle of villagers and a few shinobi he didn’t recognize. “Come on, I don’t want to lose you!”

_I can sense your chakra,_  Itachi mentally countered, but held his tongue, reminding himself why he had come. From then on, he followed a little more closely, trying to honor the girl‘s wishes.

Thankfully, no one verbally paired them together as a couple this time, but he could tell by the looks people gave him that they presumed as much.

“Here, hold this,” Akira said, and, before he could comment, she thrust four new shopping bags into his hands. While he adjusted his grip on the bags, Akira whipped out her list. “All right, we’ve got all the foodstuffs as well as soap and cough medicine, so…” she trailed off, catching Itachi’s gaze, “I guess we’re ready to go back then!”

“I’m amazed you said all that without coughing,” Itachi remarked.

_Cough cough_

_Spoke too soon,_  Itachi mentally sighed. “Lead the… way…” Itachi trailed off. A chakra presence flicked to life on his radar—a presence he hadn’t felt in a long time.

“Itachi?” Akira looked at him questioningly, but for once Itachi’s attention was not focused on the Hyuuga girl, but rather on a mysterious figure trailing a good distance away from her.

The figure was tall, standing a head and then some above the the crowd. A straw hat sat atop his head with paper streamers surrounding the brim, covering the man’s face, except for small glimpse of slitted silver eyes.

As he walked, the tail and sleeves of his cloak trailed behind him—a black cloak decorated with red clouds outlined in white. A large neckband adorned the top of the uniform and also concealed most of the figure’s neck and face. Most obviously of all, a giant sword was strapped the man’s back, making every other shinobi’s weapon in the marketplace seem like cookware.

Itachi couldn’t believe his eyes, even with all their improvements.

It was Kisame.

As a precaution, Itachi had cloaked his chakra upon leaving the house. Not completely, because it would be far too obvious of his hiding if he were walking around with no presence. Rather, he’d made sure to lessen it, as to throw off any potential sensors who may recognize him. But Kisame knew his chakra, and he knew it well.

Itachi’s eyes darted about his surroundings. He always tried to be aware of them, in case the time arose to plot some method of escape. As an S ranked criminal and especially a member of Akatsuki, this was standard. Approximately two meters back, they’d passed an alleyway. There wasn’t much time, and he couldn’t let Kisame see them. Not here, not now.

“Itachi!” Akira raised her voice, breaking the Uchiha out of his thoughts. “What’s wrong?”

Without explanation, Itachi shifted all the shopping bags to one hand and seized Akira’s wrist with the other. She fought back.

“Itachi—”

“Just trust me,” he silenced and began to drag her back to the alley way, all the while subtly glancing back and forth between his path and Kisame’s location and using his peripherals so as not to turn his head.

Still confused, Akira followed his gaze. She, like many of the other villagers, could not help but stare at Kisame. Even with his blue skin and shark-like features covered up, his mere height caused the Akatsuki to stick out.

“Itachi, his cloak,” Akira breathed as he continued to usher her on. “It’s like…”

“Mine, yes.” He finished, now focusing fully on the area in front of them. Finally dodging the last villager, an elderly bald man in loose clothes moving at a snail’s pace, Itachi disappeared with Akira into the alleyway.

“What the hell is going on?” Akira demanded.

Itachi paid her no attention, his eyes remaining glued to Kisame. Undoubtedly, the man had sensed him, despite Itachi snuffing out his chakra mere seconds after detecting him.

“Itachi…” Akira was about to make a scene. He could hear it in her voice. He had to do something fast.

-

Confused could only begin to describe Akira’s emotions. One second Itachi was his normal, moody-albeit-somewhat-sweet self, and the next he acted like a fugitive. Clearly it had something to do with the tall man with enormous chakra, but what? What the hell was going on?

Akira readied her lungs to scream. She was not about to stand here and cower like some silly victim. But, before she could get out so much as a syllable, an odd sensation cut her off. A soft, wet, but inviting presence quieted her lips.

It took a second to register that Itachi had just kissed her, using not his hand, but his mouth to silence her.

At first, Akira couldn’t bring herself to move. She’d never expected anything like this, not from Itachi. Why he would live alone with her for a month without issue and then pick  _now_  of all times to sexually assault her?

She tried fighting him. At some point, he’d dropped the shopping bags and now pinned both her hands against her chest. Akira knew she stood no chance of out-muscling him, but dammit she was going to try! Muffled gasps escaped her lips as she squirmed, struggling to regain control of her wrists and, more importantly, her mouth, but she couldn’t. She wasn’t going anywhere unless Itachi wanted her to.

What unnerved her the most, however, was Itachi’s eyes. Not the color, and not even the expression, but the way he kept them glued on the tall man, waiting, more patiently than she would have liked, for him to walk out of sight.

An odd emptiness lingered when his lips left hers. She had felt his body pressed against hers before, during training and of course that one accidental time in the bathroom, but never quite like that. Their lips had never touched.

_I didn’t actually enjoy that, did I?_  Akira felt disgusted at even entertaining the idea. She'd certainly had boys interested in her before, but she’d never kissed one of them.

Only more confused, she desperately searched the Uchiha’s eyes for answers. All she got was an offset stare, still in the direction of the tall man whose presence she didn’t even feel anymore. All she could think about was Itachi’s weight pressed against her.

The trance broke when he looked back at her. Somehow, she could tell it hadn’t been his intent to kiss her. She couldn’t really explain how, she just knew. Whoever’s fault it was—hers, Itachi’s, the tall man’s or whatever—that didn’t change the fact that it had happened, and she was angry.

Pressing her palms against the Uchiha’s chest, Akira pushed him away. Not hard, but enough to regain a few inches of personal space. A million different things she could say raced through her head, all seeming justified in their own regard. But, much to both of their surprise, she didn’t say anything.

She just didn’t see the point.

Akira stooped to pick up the shopping bags Itachi had dropped. Itachi stood there, staring blankly. He seemed to expect some sort of strike, snide comment, or anything, really. Honestly, Akira expected herself to suddenly lash out, but nothing happened.

Akira broke into another coughing fit. Somehow, amid the excitement, her malfunctioning respiratory system had decided to take a vacation, but now it was back, and the silence was broken.

“Let’s go home.” Her voice was barely a whisper.

-

Kisame glanced around, confused at what he had just sensed.

That had been Itachi’s chakra, no doubt. That tiny little glimpse—that was him!

But it had disappeared as quickly as it had come, like a tiny fire. Had he just imagined it?

_What are you playing at, Itachi-san?_ Kisame wondered, shaking his head as he continued down the street, still the drawing stares of various villagers and Whirlpool shinobi. It just didn’t make sense.

Then again, Itachi never was a man who quite made sense.

-

Itachi and Akira walked back to the house in silence. Akira put the groceries away, and Itachi stood waiting for her to finish. It was evening now.

He could have used genjutsu to make her forget, but it wasn't worth it. Why use a genjutsu and deny Akira her freedom? He’d put her through enough as it was. Besides, he didn’t need the extra eye strain after all the work she’d done.

“The bedroom is yours tonight,” he said stoically, “you’re still sick.”

“Thanks for noticing,” her voice cut. Had Itachi been anyone else, he probably would have winced.

She stormed past him, rounding the corner toward her bedroom with clear lack of intention to make dinner before slamming the door behind her.

It didn’t matter. He needed to pack while Kisame was still here. At last, it was time to leave.

First, Itachi sought out his clothing. Honestly, Akira had purchased far more for him than he realized. Nothing extravagant, given the Hyuuga girl’s budget, but she had certainly provided. It took a few minutes, but once Itachi was positive he had gathered every article of clothing ever worn, using an empty sealing scroll he’d located on Akira’s book shelf, he performed the necessary hand signs and used the scroll as his own personal suitcase.

Next he gathered toiletries, a few trinkets here and there such as the wolf mask from Akira’s hanabi festival, and, of course, his medicine. Both bottles glowed green with Akira’s chakra, promising prolonged health. He sealed those items as well, not wanting to filch more than one sealing scroll after all he’d already taken.

He located the tattered remains of his Akatsuki uniform in Akira’s washroom, honestly surprised she’d kept it. His original shoes were there, too, and of course his headband, which he quickly tied to his forehead. Akira had thrown away everything else. He’d be unable to wear his full familiar garb until he returned to Akatsuki, but in the least, he could don his forehead protector and the necklace he maintained since day one here. Other than that, he didn’t have much left to pack.

Except the notes. All those lovely little writings, tests, and samples Akira had taken while trying to heal his diminishing health and eyesight. They were proof of his existence here, and he had to steal them to stay secret from anyone else.

Itachi doubled back to the dining room where he knew Akira’s shoulder bag lay, leaned against the table. At his request, she’d taken every piece of her work regarding him home with her every night she returned from Kaede’s. It was annoying and most certainly heavy for her, but it also prepared for this time.

Flipping through every book, folder and notebook, Itachi gradually made a pile consisting of two medical seals, several test tubes and countless papers, scribbles and drawings. This was their time together in a nutshell. Despite skipping tonight, his eyesight had improved considerably within the last week of healing sessions, and, although not perfect, it was far better than anything he dealt with at Akatsuki.

After sealing the papers and other miscellaneous things in the scroll, he strapped the container to his side, and, out of obligation, stopped to tidy her study. Just the basic picking up books and putting them back on the shelves, making the room look a little less lived in. Also, he folded the blanket Akira had been using on the sofa and neatly placed her spare pillow on top.

_It’d be rude to leave the place looking like a dump,_  he reasoned. Although after today, he was certainly one to talk.

But that was everything. He’d finished the dishes this afternoon, unaware of the day’s events, and he’d already double-checked the washroom for any renegade clothing or toiletries.

All that was left was goodbye.

Kaname and Eri would forget him soon enough. They’d probably be glad to be rid of him. Same for Saito and Misaki. Akira’s Kaede-sensei had never seen his face, and Itachi had never met the healer woman he heard so much about. All she knew was his first name. That was as much as most of the villgers here knew.

The day’s events washed over him as he walked through the study toward Akira’s room. Itachi had no intention to wake her. He hadn’t wanted things to go the way they had today. He hadn’t meant to kiss her—he of all people, child prodigy and master of strategy, couldn’t have thought of another way to conceal himself from Kisame.

Even now, he remained at a loss about what else he could have done, worsening his frustration and adding to the shame. But, like everything else in his life, he couldn’t change it. Best to allow Akira to hate him for it and hopefully make it easier for her in the morning when she woke up and he wasn’t there.

He walked into the Hyuuga girl’s room, her steady breathing the only noise. She still sounded congested. Sadly, there was nothing he could do. Nothing more than stand here and whisper his thanks to her sleeping face.

He inched closer until he stood directly over her. Even in the dark, the moonlight spilled through Akira’s window, illuminating the girl’s face as she lay on her back, face tilted toward the ceiling.

She was so beautiful. So innocent. He’d never really dwelled upon it until now. She’d saved his life, housed him, helped him, put up with his antics, followed his training… so many things he’d never expected. Despite his typical gloom and doom demeanor, he’d really enjoyed himself.

He was going to miss it here. The people, the food, the freedom—but most of all, he was going to miss her.

Every ounce of logic he possessed screamed in protest as he reached out his hand to brush the hair from her face. He lingered, unable to pull away.

He would repay her kindness with finances upon returning to Akatsuki, and after that they’d be even. Their lives would continue, and her memories of him would fade. It would be like it never happened, and he could finally go back to saving Sasuke. But he would never forget, even if she did. He’d never forget her kindness to him.

“Thank you for everything, Akira,” Itachi whispered, finally tucking the pale golden strand behind her ear. So silky, so soft. She barely stirred.

“Sayonara.”

And, with that, he was gone.

-

Kisame roamed the village streets that night, still on the prowl for Itachi. The afternoon’s event persisted to bother him. He had definitely felt Itachi’s presence.

As the shark continued on, most people in the town now accustomed to his tall frame and menacing-looking sword, he had the oddest sensation. A new presence flickered to life on his radar, among all the other villagers and shinobi.

It was Itachi. He had not been mistaken.

Kisame quickened his pace, growling silently to himself. Had things gone his way, he would have just rounded up a few villagers and tortured them until one of them spilled some information about a man matching his partner’s description. However, it would draw unnecessary attention, which Pein despised and punished greatly, and it would be pointless. Itachi had a way with remaining unnoticed—except when it came to the ladies of course, and most of the time, Kisame, on the other hand, tended to intimidate the opposite sex, cutting off any chance of normal, non-violent communication.

Kisame followed the presence to the grassy outskirts of the village and past the village gate where both guards were asleep, under a temporary genjutsu.

_Itachi’s work, undoubtedly._  Kisame grinned widely when he recognized a pair of glowing crimson orbs.

“I thought you were dead!” the shark called, finally face to face with the notorious Uchiha.

“Hn.” It was definitely Itachi. “The delay was less than ideal.”

“I’ll say,” Kisame scoffed. “How the hell did you survive a fall like that?”

No answer. Just narrowed eyes.

“Anyway,” Kisame continued, “I guess this means we head back now. I finished the mission while you were doing… well, I got the scroll.”

“Thank you.”

“It was around here, anyway.”

The two began walking. It would be a long journey back.

“What happened to your cloak?” Kisame finally asked. It had been years since he’d seen Itachi in civilian clothes. Save for the occasional under-cover mission, he always wore the standard black and red garb.

“Destroyed in the fall. Irreparably.”

“Oh.” Kisame could tell by his tone he was getting nothing out of this guy. As usual. “Well, at least we killed the bastards who did it.”

“Hn.”

“Oh, and one more thing…” Kisame reached into his pocket and pulled out Itachi’s Akatsuki ring. Catching the Uchiha’s gaze, he tossed it to him. Through some miracle, the nearly blind Uchiha caught it.

“Found it where you fell.”

“Hn. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Shaking his head, Kisame gave a small smile as Itachi, still maintaining his stride, replaced the ring on his right hand.

Even with the cold reunion, he was glad Itachi wasn’t dead.

-

Akira grudgingly opened her eyes that morning, no alarm sounding but the gentle sunshine through her window. Yawning, she sat up and stretched her arms, eyes still heavy. In the least, her headache was gone. All she needed to cure her cold was sleep.

“Can’t be getting too used to sleeping in my own bed now,” she muttered, grudgingly sloughing off the covers and allowing her feet to make contact with the floor. It was cold, but someone needed to start breakfast.

_I wonder if Itachi’s awake._  That was odd. She didn’t sense his chakra. He was almost always up before her.

Admittedly, she was still mad at him about yesterday, but she felt more confused than angry. If he had truly wanted to do that, he would have done it long ago when they were alone at her house. There had to be a logical explanation. She just needed to talk to him.

_Gotta find him first, I guess._  It was beginning to bother her that she couldn’t sense his chakra.

The Hyuuga girl rose from her room and headed to the study, but he wasn’t there… and all the books were all tidied.

_Oh no._  Akira’s eyes widened in realization, and she bolted in desperation to the bathroom cabinet where she stored his extra medicine bottle.

Gone. She doubled-checked the living room, the dining room, and even the study a second time, but to no avail.

Her last resort lay in the washroom: his tattered cloak and forehead protector.

They were gone, too.

“Akira?”

Kaname and Eri waited outside Akira’s door to accompany her to the day’s lesson. She said she would be better by today, but no one answered the door.

“Maybe she’s still sick?” Eri suggested.

“Then Itachi would have answered.” Kaname reasoned. The door was unlocked.

“Akira?” It didn’t look like she was awake yet. The duo quickly located Akira in her bedroom.

“Where’s Uchiha-san?” Eri inquired. Akira lay on her bed with her back facing them as she watched her prize goldfish swim about.

“Who knows?” Akira muttered, clearly upset.

Kaname spoke, “So, he’s not here right now?”

“He’s gone. He left somewhere between last night and this morning.”

“Oh…” Kaname and Eri looked at each other helplessly.

“Are you coming?” Kaname inquired after a short period of silence.

“No.” For once, Akira just wanted to stay home and brood. The last thing she wanted to do right now was learn how to heal people. And all that overtime last week must have counted for something, right?

“We’ll tell Kaede-sensei,” Eri said gently.

“Fine.” Akira still didn’t bother facing her friends. She just wanted to be alone. Her friends finally left, but she remained motionless. To be honest, her physical body felt fine. It was her spirit that was crushed.

Akira blinked back tears she’d been hoping to avoid. She’d actually been getting used to living with him. It had been fun—waking up and knowing that she had another person to sit down and eat with, or coming home from a lesson with Kaede-sensei knowing someone was waiting for her. Hell, just being able to train with him had been enough! She knew it couldn’t have lasted forever, but why hadn’t he said anything?

Now sitting up and wrapped in her blanket, her eyes wandered to her nightstand and rested on a third picture she’d recently added: the one of her and Itachi at the hanabi festival. She reached out and took it from the nightstand, her delicate fingers wrapping around its wooden frame.

There she stood, grinning like an idiot and clinging to his arm like an obsessed freak. She’d only been posing. He looked back at her, dark eyes, no smile. An emotionless face.

It infuriated her. How dare he? How dare he just stare blankly back at her when she’d done so much, tried so hard, and, dare she say it, grown so attached?

Had he ever even cared?

_Crunch!_

The frame’s glass shattered beneath her knuckles as the picture’s remains fluttered through the air and landed on the ground. Blood dripped from her hand and the tears finally began to spill.

Akira pulled the blanket tighter around herself, desperately seeking comfort.

_Why, Itachi? Why…?_


	15. Chapter 15

Akatsuki’s stone doors opened with a menacing growl, indicating the members’ return.

“Kisame and Itachi are back, un?” Deidara turned his head as the duo emerged from the dark hallway and into the main room. The blonde sat with Hidan playing poker while Kakuzu poured over documents at the same table, calculator in hand.

“I’d hoped you were dead,” Kakuzu muttered, not bothering to look up.

“Disappointed?” Kisame couldn’t help but smile, “Sorry, we’re not dead yet.”

Itachi stared ahead blankly, saying nothing. Kisame knew he was quiet, but he was only this quiet when something bothered him.

“What the fuck took you so long?” Even Hidan had noticed.

Kisame shrugged. What could he say?

“Pein will want our report,” Itachi spoke coolly. Kisame rolled his eyes.

As the other members resumed their previous activities, Kisame and Itachi headed to Pein’s lair.

“You certainly took your time on this mission,” Pein remarked. Konan nodded in agreement. “Was there a problem?” Their leaders nail-painted fingers wrapped around the scroll Kisame handed him.

“No, the mission went just fine.” Kisame reassured, “As you can see, we got the scroll. Itachi-san and I were just separated for a while.”

“It this true?” Pein raised a pierced eyebrow at Itachi for confirmation.

“Hn.” Itachi replied, which usually meant yes. “There were… complications.”

“We finished the mission, so there’s nothing to worry about.” Kisame assured gruffly. “No one alive knows we were there.”

“We shall see,” Pein said ominously, rinnegan swirling. “You may go.”

-

The sound of Kaname’s laughter echoed through the area as Akira, Kaname and Eri walked through town for their healing lesson with Kaede.

Time had passed. Four months shy of a year. That Uchiha had been out of her life for quite some time. She’d already turned eighteen.

At first, Akira had been what her friends would call devastated. She buried herself in work to avoid thinking, and, according to her friends, found herself laughing significantly less.

 

Almost immediately after Itachi left, Kaede had made the girl an offer she could not refuse, and she’d been permitted to more intensive training in emergency care, as well as more mission time. It meant she saw Kaname and Eri less, but, at this point, she didn’t care. She just wanted training. But even with her extra missions, Akira did her best to keep up with her studies.

She had just returned from an assignment in the grass village, more specifically, a body-guard mission for a travelling merchant, and she’d been successful. The worst injuries she had to treat during her time there were little accidents. However, her mission before that had involved some serious hostiles, and she’d been lucky to escape with her life. Others hadn’t.

It helped her forget. The rush, the need for survival—all that came with being a true ninja, not just a trainee. Now, she’d gotten so much better at faking a smile. Outwardly, she was fine, but inwardly, Akira knew only too well she was still trying to heal.

If only things had gone differently—if only things hadn’t happened so suddenly, maybe she’d be able to forget.

Saito had tried to hide his relief, and Misaki had been a bit disappointed. Nothing even close to the aching loss Akira felt. Kaede-sensei didn’t seem to notice her misery. In the least, the healer’s brother kept sending her on missions, so her healing abilities were improving.

“Ne, Akira, are you spacing off again?” Eri’s soft tone brought the Hyuuga girl back to reality.

Akira twisted her face into a smile. “Sorry, I was just thinking about the test we have today.”

Kaname froze. “Test…?”

-

“Deidara-senpai! Are you okay?” The clay nin’s eyes twitched in annoyance at the sound of Tobi’s voice.

“No, I am not all right!” he snapped. “I can’t walk and I’m stuck here with you, un!”

The story behind this event wasn’t a long one. Essentially, he and his idiotic partner had been assigned an assassination mission. Standard, fairly easy, discounting logistics. However, seconds before detonation, one of the victim’s guards had spotted the clay nin from afar and threw a spray of chakra sensing shuriken that Deidara had been unable to avoid.

The metallic weapons still protruded from his leg and Deidara did not think it wise to remove them. Afterwards, much to the clay nin’s humiliation, Tobi half-carried him here, but after the first few miles, Deidara refused to be taken any further. Personally, he would rather bleed to death than return to Akatsuki slumped over Tobi’s shoulder.

“Oooooh, this is not good!” Tobi whined.

Deidara’s eyebrow twitched again. No matter what he said, the mere sound of Tobi’s voice irritated him.

“Look, if you want to be helpful, go find a village where I can get this treated. There should be one nearby.”

Tobi paused. Who knew, maybe he was actually trying to think.

“Then I’ll go find a healer for you, Deidara-senpai!”

_Does he even know which direction the village is in?_ Deidara mentally sighed. It wasn’t far, but he doubted Tobi could properly sense the chakra to find it. As much as he hated to admit it, neither of them had much idea where they were.

“Tobi, even if you get lucky enough to actually locate a healer, how the hell do you plan on getting them here, un? I can’t move and you can’t persuade to save your life! Or mine for that matter, un.”

Tobi was probably grinning beneath that mask of his. “But if it’s for you, Senpai, I’ll find a way!”

_Must. Resist. Urge. To. Strangle. Partner!_ Clenching his fist (and crushing the mouth on that hand), Deidara somehow managed to restrain himself from yelling.

“Just be sure to leave the uniform behind. You’re liable to get captured enough as it is. You don’t need a neon sign screaming ‘I’m an Akatsuki,’ too, un.”

“Hai, Senpai! Thanks for your concern!”

“Idiot! I’m dead if you don’t return, un!”

-

Uchiha Obito chuckled to himself once Deidara was well out of hearing range. How did he get himself into this mess?

Healing Deidara would actually be quite easy if he did himself, but he couldn’t risk exposing his true identity yet. Tobi wasn’t a particularly speedy person, either, so he needed to take his time. Not to mention, if he abducted a healer by force, it could also arouse suspicion with his blonde partner.

The Akatsuki entered the village, which much to his delight, was not well-guarded. Obito slipped in without a problem, and then activated his sharingan to better distinguish between civilian and shinobi.

-

“I feel bad for Kaname; she had to stay behind and ask Kaede-sensei if she could retake the test,” Eri remarked as the two remaining Whirlpool girls made their way through town.

“Yeah. I keep telling her to write down test days so she won’t forget,” Akira agreed. “Although personally, I think I did alright.”

“Did you study?”

“A bit. I’d already done one of those protocols on a mission, anyway.”

The dark-haired girl’s brows knitted together. “You’ve been going on a lot of missions, lately.”

“You and Kaname accompany me sometimes.”

“Akira—”

The blonde interrupted with an apologetic smile,” I want to increase my skills.”

“That’s just the thing,” Eri began, “I’m worried about you, and as are Kaname and Kaede-sensei. You been distant lately, not just busy.”

“So?”

“So, I think there’s a lot more to this than you’re saying.” No reply. Eri pushed a little further. “All I can think is that you’re still upset about him.”

Akira froze, causing her questioner to stop walking as well.

“I thought I told you,” Akira said through gritted teeth, “ _never_ to mention ‘him’ again!”

“I’m your friend, Akira, and burying yourself in work and missions isn’t going to make you feel better!”

The Hyuuga bit her lip. She wanted to retort—in fact she’d wanted to lash out at everyone for a while now. But she couldn’t. She knew what it felt like to hurt.

“Look,” Akira finally said, “That is not the reason I’m trying harder. I just want to improve.”

_Yeah, and give him a piece of your mind if you ever cross paths again,_ a small voice in the back of her head spoke up. And, sadly, she couldn’t argue with it.

“If you say so,” Eri sounded hesitant, “I’ll believe you.”

“Good.” Akira forced her face into a smile. “then—”

“Um…” an abnormally high-pitched male voice interrupted her, causing both kunoichi to turn.

The speaker was a man dressed almost completely in black with the exception of a green scarf and a bright spiral-like orange mask with only one eyehole.

Akira and Eri exchanged looks.

_What the hell?_

-

“Who are you?” the blonde girl asked the Uchiha.

Finally, he located a healer—well, two of them actually, but his sharingan told him the lavender-eyed girl was stronger.

“I’m Tobi!” he replied in his good boy voice. “I apologize for interrupting, but are you a healer?”

The two girls glanced at another uncertainly again. They were probably considering whether or not to reply.

“What of it?” the blonde spoke first.

“I have an injured friend that needs your help!” Tobi held up his left hand, which still bore blood stains from when he’d half-carried Deidara. “Will you help me?”

Both females eyed the stains, but only one of them spoke. “Where’s this ‘friend’ of yours?”

She sounded unconvinced, like any good ninja should.

“Just north of the village gate. Check if you like!” Could she even? Neither of these girls looked like sensors.

Still eying him suspiciously, the blonde made a surprisingly familiar hand sign before muttering, “Byakugan!”

Tobi raised an eyebrow. A Hyuuga? Here of all places? That headband of hers definitely didn’t say Konoha.

“Describe your partner,” she demanded.

“Um… long blonde hair over one eye. Loud... Especially since he can’t move and his leg won’t stop bleeding.”

“Well,” the blonde turned to her friend, “There’s definitely someone there matching his description. And he’s injured.”

The dark-haired girl, who had remained silent the entire time, seemed more dubious than her friend. But he did hear her quietly admit to the blonde that she could sense Deidara, too.

Perhaps she was a better sensor than he’d thought. He still only wanted the blonde, though.

“Fine,” the Hyuuga finally spoke. “But I warn you, if you’re trying to trick us, you’ve got another thing coming!”

“Tobi is a good boy! He would never deceive anyone!” The two looked even more unnerved by that statement. Perhaps he should have saved his catchphrase for later.

“So where did you say this friend of yours was again?” the brown-eyed kunoichi inquired, probably trying to make sure his answer didn’t change.

“Um, can I make a small request before answering that?”

They gave him a double “go on” stare.

“I only need one of you. Would you come with me?” He motioned to Akira.

“Absolutely not—” the dark-haired girl began.

“Eri,” the other interrupted in a surprisingly calm tone, “it’s actually better this way. If I don’t return, at least you know where I am. If we both go, there’s a lesser chance of us being found if something goes wrong. Besides, what kind of idiot only wants to take one of us?”

He’d never thought of it that way. But he could certainly be thankful that she had.

“Only if you’re sure you’ll be all right, Akira.”

The Hyuuga gave her friend a confident grin. “I thought you had more faith in me than that.”

-

Deidara impatiently drummed blood-stained fingers over his uninjured leg. Where the hell was Tobi? That orange-faced retard was slow, but even he should have returned by now!

_I hope the idiot didn’t get lost, un._

Only second after thinking this, Deidara spotted two figures approaching in the distance, one of which was undoubtedly Tobi, but the other was unfamiliar. Judging by the curvy shape and the long blonde hair, it was a girl, but…

_No way._ Deidara’s eye widened.

The clay nin sighed aloud. “I don’t know how he did it, but at least that idiot has good taste, un.”

Deidara soon received a full-view of his new medic, and needless to say, he liked what he saw.

“Is this your friend?” She turned to Tobi, who nodded in acknowledgement.

“Yo,” the explosive’s expert gave her a small wave. “I’m Deidara.”

-

Ignoring the gesture, Akira knelt beside the blonde and gently pryed his fingers away from the injury. “This is deep,” she remarked, examining the numerous metal weapons still protruding from his leg.

“No shit,” Deidara muttered, chin resting in one hand and eye narrowed off to the side.

“How long ago did this happen?”

Her patient shrugged. “A few hours, un.”

_As I thought._ About to open her mouth, the healer paused when she noticed something strange. Then, to make sure she wasn’t just seeing things, she seized the clay nin’s hand and turned his palm to face her.

A small cavity opened to reveal a wetted tongue and a pair of glistening white teeth.

“You have mouths… on your hands?”

Deidara frowned, causing Tobi to snicker.

“It’s a kinjutsu.” He snatched back his hand. “Just heal me already. This is starting to hurt.”

“Y-yes.” Forcing her train of thought back to why she’d come, Akira resumed her examination. There were seven injuries altogether. Deidara had been wise enough not to remove them, sparing him from bleeding out. Now she had to remove them one by one.

“You might want something to bite on,” Akira warned. “I don’t have any pain killer’s with me.” She had all sorts of medical supplies in her bag, but unfortunately she’d used up all the other pain killers on her last mission.

“Hmf… I’ll be fine!”

After removing the third weapon, Deidara’s face was already beet red in his attempts not to scream.

“Breathe, Deidara, it’ll help with the pain,” Akira said calmly, pressing firmly with one glowing green hand on the wounds and pulling out weapons with the other.

“Shut… up…” his voice strained.

“Deidara-senpai!” Tobi fretted.

“Just one more…” With a final yank of her tweezers and a wince from Deidara, the last shuriken came free. Blood spurted from the wound, but Akira quickly filled her second hand with healing chakra and began closing that wound, as well.

Within minutes, normal color had returned to Deidara’s face and he was in considerably less pain. Now all she needed to do was fully close the wounds.

_This is taking up more chakra than I’d anticipated,_ Akira thought, gritting her teeth as she tried to ignore the lightheadedness. She’d rather not fall unconscious among these strangers. After persevering another minute, the Hyuuga girl stopped the chakra flow to her hands. She would have fainted had she pushed any longer.

“That should do it.” Trying to dwell on her accomplishment rather than the pounding in her head, Akira smiled weakly. “Still be careful when you try to walk, Deidara-san. You’ve lost a lot of blood.”

“Just call me Deidara.” The blonde examined her handiwork before hopping to his feet. “Not bad, kunoichi. I don’t even see a scar.”

“Thank you, Akira-san!” Tobi joined in happily. “Now that Senpai can walk again, we can get going!”

About to stand up as well, Akira froze when her eyes rested where Deidara previously sat: a blood-stained black cloak with red clouds.

“Where did you get that cloak?” Wide-eyed, Akira turned back to Deidara. _It’s identical to Itachi’s!_

The two males were speechless as the healer staggered to her feet, about to take off running.

“She’s going to tell her village!” Deidara chased after her, seizing her wrist before Akira could escape more than a few feet. Breaking his grip with her free hand, she continued running. Unfortunately, her head still spun from chakra exhaustion, making it difficult to make sensible hand signs.

“Akira-san, we can explain!”

“Dammit, get back here!” Deidara growled. Out of gentle options, Deidara caught up with her again and roughly grabbed the kunoichi’s shoulder before she could jump away. Keeping a firmer grip this time, he punched her in the stomach with a chakra-infused fist, rendering her unconscious.

“Senpai! You killed her!”

“She’s not dead, you moron. I just knocked her out, un,” Deidara fumed as he supported Akira’s limp body. “Besides, what else was I supposed to do?”

“This is not good!” Tobi whined, frantically dancing around. “What are we going to do? We can’t take her back to her village now!”

“Then I guess we’ll just have to take her with us,” And with that, Deidara laid her on the ground and began tearing strips of cloth from his bloody Akatsuki uniform to use as makeshift rope to tie her hands and feet.

“We’re lucky we caught her off guard,” Deidara remarked, roughly slumping the girl over his shoulder once he finished. “She’s feisty, un.”

“You mean you’re not just going to kill her?”

“Pein mentioned something about needing a healer at one point, right? Why not her?”

“But Leader-sama hasn’t approved her!”

“So? She’s too pretty to kill and, as you said, we can’t exactly leave her here, un.”

“But—”

“Tobi, I’ve been doing this a lot longer than you. Shut up and do as I say, un!”

“H-hai…” the Uchiha stuttered. His mind flew back to Eri. _That girl saw me, too. Should I tell Senpai about it?_

“Are you coming or not?” Deidara called, now a good five steps in front of him.

“Y-yes.” Tobi ran to catch up with his partner. _Then again, I don’t have much of a choice here. She’s just one kunoichi. Who’s going to believe her?_

And on that thought, Uchiha Obito forgot all worries concerning Koizuki Eri and concentrated fully on the journey ahead.


	16. Chapter 16

Akira wheezed as she attempted to draw in a breath but found it oddly difficult. A weight pressed against her diaphragm while her arms and legs dangled. Her head pounded like she’d been hung upside down for hours.

_What the hell?_  Sunlight stung her eyes as she forced them to open, worsening her headache. She was moving, but how?

“Finally awake, kunoichi? For a healer, you can certainly sleep for a while, un.”

Now fully aware, Akira discovered her limbs were tied together and her body was slumped over said person’s shoulder.

“Where am I?” Her voice wasn’t nearly as defiant as she hoped, but given she could barely breathe at the moment, it was miracle she could talk at all.

“You’re on your way to our hideout!” Tobi’s masked face came into her lopsided view.

Akira’s head sagged in disbelief. This was not happening. “How much longer until we get there?”

She winced as Deidara shrugged, unwittingly pressing his shoulder further into her already flattened midsection. “Fifteen to twenty minutes. Half an hour tops.”

“How long have we been travelling?”

“Look, kunoichi, this is the last question I’m answering. We’re a good distance away from your home village, so don’t count on anyone trying to rescue you, un. Even if by some miracle someone did manage to find you, they’d be no match for us, or at least me, anyway.”

_How could I have been so stupid?_ Akira inwardly groaned.  _Eri, I hope you’ve realized I’m missing._

By the time the trio reached this “hideout” (which Akira found to be a large rock with a seal on it), it was already dusk, and Akira felt more than ready to be able to breathe again.

“Don’t try to escape now, kunoichi,” Deidara warned as he lowered her to the ground and slit her bonds with a kunai. “You won’t get far, and I would also have to kill you, un.”

“Stop calling me ‘kunoichi!’” Akira snapped, rubbing her wrists. “My name is Akira!”

“So ungrateful,” Deidara muttered as he twisted the blue ring on his finger before performing a set of quick hand signs. Seconds later, a rumble echoed as the boulder began rising.

“What the…” Akira watched in awe.

“For the record,” Deidara began as he pulled the captive to her feet, “this isn’t just a childish club. We’re a legitimate S-ranked criminal organization. Akatsuki's the name, un. ”

Akira’s surprise only grew as he shoved her into the cave. The room they were currently in was dim and only contained statues. The two statutes that caught her attention most were the matching hand sculptures whose extended fingers looked large enough for a person to stand on.

“Keep moving,” Deidara interrupted her thoughts with another shove. “Everyone is probably in the main room.”

_Like I know where that is._ Akira scowled.

They continued walking down the dark hallway until a door with light showing through the bottom came into view. There were definitely people in there—not only could she sense chakra presences, but she could hear them talking.

“And try not to freak out,” Deidara added in a low voice.

Akira brought her gaze to the stone floor. There wasn’t a sliver of hope for her escape now.

“Deidara, what the hell is that?” a boisterous voice greeted her ears. Akira looked up to see a man with slicked back silver hair, bright purple eyes and a face that often wore angry looks. He was clad in the same black and red cloak as Tobi and Deidara, although the garment opened to reveal his bare chest. An odd–looking pendant dangled from his neck.

“It’s obviously a girl, Hidan.”

_Hidan?_  The healer tore her gaze away from the Jashinist.  _He gives me the creeps._

“I think he means to ask what she is doing here.” Another person joined the scene.

“She’s a healer, Kakuzu-senpai!” Tobi chirped.

“A healer, eh?” The one named Kakuzu raised an eyebrow. “Is she any good?”

“Obviously, un, or I wouldn’t have brought her here.” Deidara frowned.

While the two bickered, Akira stole glances at the other men in the room.

One man, or rather thing, hovered in the corner.  Like everyone else, he donned the standard black and red cloak, but what made him stand out was his grassy hair, the two different colors of his face and his glowing yellow eyes. Not to mention the giant Venus flytrap protruding from his neck. That last one was especially hard to miss.

_Great. I’m stuck in an S ranked organization of freak shows._ The Hyuuga girl shivered when she unintentionally made eye contact.

“Is something wrong?” The unexpected voice made her jump. For some reason, it seemed like his black side alone was talking to her.

“Don’t be so forward. She’s probably scared enough as it is,” his white side spoke this time.

“Who… or what are you exactly?” At least she’d managed to make her voice sound unafraid.

“That’s Zetsu,” Akira jumped again when Deidara joined the conversation. “He has split personalities, so don’t mind him if he starts muttering to himself—”

“What all the commotion?” A new voice rang out, cutting off Deidara. Akira felt two new chakra presences enter the room. Very familiar presences.

“Deidara kidnapped some healer chick, and now she’s apparently going to live here,” Kakuzu explained. “That is, if she survives the first week.”

Looking at the man who had just spoken, Akira immediately recognized him as the tall swordsman from her village.

_That means…_  She turned her gaze to the second presence.

Long raven hair and piercing red eyes—and he looked just as surprised to see her.

“Itachi…” her lips formed his name, but barely any sound came out. This was unlikely, impossible even. Of all the places she could have been taken, how had she wound up in the same room as him?

_That bastard._  Clenching her fist, Akira fought tears as pent-up anger returned. All this time she’d held back her emotions, afraid if she let anything out, she would completely lose it. And now the cause of her problem stood right in front of her.

“Do you know her, Itachi-san?” the shark-like man inquired.

Akira completely lost it.

“ITACHI!” Akira charged forward, blue surrounding her fist as she concentrated chakra into her right hand. “YOU FREELOADING SON OF A BITCH!!!" Just as the last syllable of her insult rang, her fist made contact with the side of his face.

The force of her strike sent Itachi flying into the nearest wall with a sickening crunch, leaving a dent. But, despite the damage, the enraged blonde was hardly finished. Her muscles clenched to charge again, but Kisame stopped her with a hasty double arm bar.

“Dammit, let go of me!” The livid kunoichi struggled against the swordsman’s iron grip.

_I don’t care what it takes. I’m beating that bastard’s pretty boy face black and blue!_  Akira’s ragged breathing kept her from screaming this, but the thought consumed her mind. That stupid face—the one had plagued her dreams for what felt like an eternity!

“Oi, calm down,” the blue man restraining her said.

“Calm?” Despite her uneven breathing, she managed this much. “How the hell can I be  _calm_  with that Uchiha still conscious? Let go of me already—!”

With of roll of his eyes, Kisame swiftly head-butted her in the back of the head. Strong enough to knock her unconscious, but not enough to kill her. Akira’s body sagged in Kisame’s arms.

“There we go.” The shark turned to his partner, who was already on his feet again. The entire left side of his face swelled and a streak of blood dripped down the side of his mouth. Considering this was Itachi, Kisame had to resist the urge to burst out laughing.

“I’ll take her off your hands.” A wide-eyed Deidara stared at the Uchiha, not even bothering to add his usual "un," as he took the unconscious kunoichi from Kisame.

Itachi gathered what little composure he had and left the room as the other members stared in awe.

“The fuck was that?” Hidan boomed, breaking the silence.

“Apparently, yet another person after Itachi’s life.” Kisame sighed, shaking his head. “Does he know anyone who doesn’t want to kill him?”

-

Itachi winced as he gingerly placed a hand on his swelling face. Despite clenching his teeth together, he’d still suffered damage, albeit mostly after her strike landed him into the wall.

He deserved that, without question, damaged reputation and all. She’d gotten stronger. He hadn’t expected her punch to be that solid.

_Out of all the healers Deidara could have kidnapped, why did it have to be her?_ Itachi sighed. This was just his luck. His eyes narrowed when he felt another chakra presence enter the room.  Kisame’s blue-gilled face came into his blurred view, sporting an unmistakable shit-eating grin.

“You should really put some ice on that.”

“Later.” Not now when things were this tense. Even with his ninja training, he’d never make it to and from the kitchen alive.

“So…” Judging by Kisame awkward edge, he was about to be interrogated, “is she an ex-girlfriend or what?”

Itachi gave him one of his usual Looks.

“Okay, scratch the girlfriend theory.” Kisame thought for another moment. “Well,” a sigh escaped the blue man’s lips, “if you’re going to be stubborn, I’ll go pester your ex later.” The shark received a full glare this time. “But seriously, either put something on that or I’ll have to drag that crazy medic in here to heal you.” Judging by the Uchiha’s blank expression, he would have to go with the latter.

“Until then,” Kisame gave him a small wave and allowed the Uchiha his privacy back.

Itacahi slipped into the bathroom and squinted at his reflection in the mirror. Kisame wasn’t kidding—he needed to do something about the swelling.

-

Akira moaned as her consciousness ebbed back for a second time that day.

_Itachi…_  After forcing her eyes open, the day’s events rushed back to her, along with a worse headache than before. She’d seen him again, given him a piece of her mind, and, judging by the splitting headache, someone had knocked her out.  _Again._

Anger had an odd way of making the kunoichi forget her fears, but with her immediate anger expressed and the adrenaline rush gone, the truth began to sink in—she was nowhere near the Whirlpool Village, anymore.

Someone had laid her on the room’s only bed. It was queen-sized with a dark comforter probably concealing white sheets to match the white pillowcases. The walls weren’t made of stone like the other room she’d been in, but they did have a gothic look to them. Akira blamed it on the lack of lighting.

The only other pieces of furniture were a nightstand to the right of the bed and a large oak dresser across the room. About two feet to the left of the dresser was an ajar door leading to a bathroom.  Further to her right was another door leading to either the exit or a closet, since the same type of door was symmetrically placed on the opposite wall.

_What a bland room._  Dark colors, no windows, and absolutely no variety in anything. Were all the rooms in Akatsuki like this?

“Oi, kunoichi! You awake yet, un?” Deidara’s voice interrupted her musing.

“My name is Akira!” she called, and, a moment later, the clay nin unlocked the door to her left and entered the dimly lit room.

“Do you wanna go blind, un? Turn on the damn lights!” Deidara flicked a light switch she hadn’t noticed before. The light stung her eyes and pain shot through the rest of her head as brightness filled the area.

“How’s your head?”

“Fine.” Actually, it hurt like hell and the lights were not helping, but considering her position, Akira didn’t mind waiting to heal herself.

Deidara’s only visible eye stared into her lavender orbs for a second, unnerving the kunoichi more than she was willing to admit.

“If your eyes had pupils, they’d probably be dilated. I know how strong Kisame is, and a knockout like that would give any normal person a concussion.”

_Terrific._ It would definitely explain the headache and sensitivity to light. On the bright side, she didn’t have any noticeable memory loss.

“Anything else I should know?” Akira couldn’t help showing her sarcasm as she, against her better judgment, allowed Deidara to sit down beside her and examine where Kisame had struck her.

“How long ago did you wake up?” Akira winced as his fingers brushed against the swelling lump.

“A few minutes,” she replied through gritted teeth.

“You should heal yourself already, un.” With a final tap on the base of her neck, Deidara pulled away. Ignoring the voice screaming not to let her guard down, Akira gave into the pain and began channeling healing chakra to the injury.

“So while you do that,” Deidara began, “mind explaining how you and Itachi know each other?”

_Should’ve known._  The Hyuuga girl rolled her eyes. It certainly explained Deidara’s sudden niceness. “If you must know, I saved his life.”

Deidara’s expression reflected a look combined with surprise and interest. “You what now, un?”

Akira frowned. “Don’t make me repeat myself.”

“What happened?”

Akira shook her head. "I found him bleeding to death in the woods and took pity on him.”

“What about Kisame? You didn’t seem to know him, un.”

“They got separated. He probably thought Itachi was dead.”

“Wow.” Deidara blinked. “So why are you so pissed off at him then, un?”

Akira balked.  “Um… how to put this…”

“You fell in love with him, un?” Deidara guessed.

“NO!” Her answer was louder (and hastier) than intended. “No,” she said again, more calmly this time. “He’s just an asshole. Who wouldn’t want to hit him?” Deidara didn’t need to know she’d been living with Itachi. Word would get around, and that was the last thing either of them wanted.

“True. Most of us have wanted to do that at one point or another, un. Me especially.” Deidara blanched. “I’m stuck in this silly organization thanks to him.”

“Really?” Akira raised an eyebrow. “Even so, I doubt there’s no punishment for injuring one of your teammates.”

“We won’t hold it against you. Most of us are just annoyed we weren’t the ones to do it first, un.”

“I’m sure this isn’t the first time he’s been hit,” Akira reasoned.

“Like that? I’d wager it is.” Deidara grinned. “Seriously, you’re fine.”

Returning the smile, Akira stopped the flow of chakra to her head and brought her hand away. “Well, I guess that’s a good thing.” Hopping off the bed, Akira briefly stretched and turned back to Deidara. “Anything else I should know?”

“Not that I can think of. Any questions, un?”

“Am I allowed out of here or am I doomed to spend the rest of my days locked up?”

“I suppose I could show you around.” The explosives expert stood up, too. “Do you know everyone yet?”

“Could you show me around first?”

Soon enough, she and her abductor were walking through the dark, unfamiliar hallways where they ran into Hidan and Kakuzu.

“So she’s finally awake?” the dark-skinned man said. “About time.”

“If it isn’t Itachi’s girlfriend,” Hidan remarked, scanning her from head to toe with bright purple eyes. A shiver ran down her spine.

“Girlfriend?” Deidara couldn’t resist a chuckle. “How’d you come to that conclusion?”

Ignoring the dread, Akira glared, hands on her hips. “I would never date that emotionless, dead-eyed Uchiha if he were the last man on earth!”

“Didn’t ask your opinion, bitch.” Hidan took his gaze away from the kunoichi, clearly annoyed.

“We never got your name, Miss…?” Kakuzu interrupted before Hidan could say more.

“Hyuuga Akira. You’re Kakuzu, right?”

“We’ll just be going,” Akira felt the clay nin grab her wrist and forcibly drag her away.

“I take it I should stay away from those two?” Akira said once the other two Akatsuki were well out of earshot.

“Yep.” Deidara still didn’t let go of her arm. “The only reason Kakuzu asked your name was to see if you were on any wanted lists.”

“To cash me in for a bounty?”

“Right again.” Deidara finally let go of her. “They shouldn’t bother you too much if you keep your mouth shut. Everyone in here has their own room, so privacy isn’t usually an issue, un.”

“Is the room you put me in a spare or something?”

“Actually, no. That one belongs to Akatsuki’s only female member, Konan. But as you can see, she’s not usually around, un.”

“Where is she?”

“Usually travelling around with our leader. And for further notice, he’s referred to as Pein. Doesn’t hurt to call him Leader-san or Pein-sama if he seems in a bad mood, though.”

“Got it.” The healer glanced around the area they were currently in. Deidara had led her back into the Akatsuki main room, and, oddly enough, that plant-like thing was still hovering in the corner. “What was his name again?” Akira tried to be discreet as she motioned to the grass nin.

“Oh, that’s Zetsu, un,” Deidara said, about to continue explaining until said grass nin made his way over to them.

“So this is our new healer?” his black side seemed to say.

“She’s pretty,” his white side spoke this time, beginning a back-and-forth conversation between the two—or was it one?

His black side continued, “She’s also got one hell of a right hook. The wall’s even cracked.”

“Yeah. Itachi still won’t explain the story behind that one.”

“Probably in too much pain.”

Deidara had mentioned something about this guy having a split personality, which, to be honest, was creepy to observe.

“Moving on!” Her tour guide of sorts had no trouble brining her into the next room. “This would be the kitchen.” They walked inside. “It’s every man for himself in here. If you want something, either bribe somebody or make it yourself. Also, pray somebody doesn’t eat it before you.”

Akira glanced around the room, trying to memorize her surroundings. “So there’s no set meal times, then?”

Deidara grinned. “Never have been and probably never will be.”

Akira began opening cabinets to see what they held. Come to think of it, she hadn’t eaten since breakfast. “Am I allowed to cook here?”

Deidara shrugged. “I don’t see why not,” he said, watching her take a few items out of the cabinet before grabbing a nearby pan. “What are you planning on, un?”

She gave him a sly grin. “You’ll see.”

-

“Hey, Kaname,” the copper-haired kunoichi turned to see Uzumori Saito walking toward her, “have you seen Akira?”

Gripping her grocery bags a bit more tightly so she wouldn’t drop them, Kaname turned to face her questioner.

“I saw her this morning, but I left Kaede-sensei’s late, so I think Eri was the last to see her.”

“What’s this about Akira?” Conveniently, the dark-haired kunoichi appeared behind Saito.

“We were wondering if you knew where she was,” Saito explained. “Is she at home?”

“No, I just checked.” Eri looked worried. “You mean she’s not here, either?”

“No…” Kaname eyed her teammate suspiciously. “Do you have any idea where she might be?”

The dark-haired girl nervously glanced between Saito and Kaname. “Are you positive you haven’t seen her since after this morning?”

“YES!”

“Oh no,” Eri muffled her voice as she cupped a hand over her mouth. “I knew I shouldn’t have let her go alone.”

“What?” Kaname’s emerald eyes narrowed.

“Where was she going?” Saito demanded.

“A man in a bright orange mask came up to Akira and asked us to help an injured friend of his near the village gate who couldn’t walk.”

“And?”

“His friend needed help. Akira and I both sensed his chakra, so we knew the masked man was telling the truth about that much.”

“Then what happened?” Eri tried not to cringe at the look Saito gave her.

“He said he only needed one of us, and asked for Akira. Akira said yes and assured me she could handle it. I monitored them for a while as I continued on my way home, but on the way Fuu needed some help with her ramen stand, so I left it alone.”

Saito seized Eri’s shoulders, causing the kunoichi to cry out in surprise. “Who was this orange-masked guy, and where did he take Akira?”

“I-I think his name was Tobi,” Eri stuttered, “and he didn’t say anything about where he was going. I told you, I was helping Fuu with her ramen stand!”

“I don’t believe this…” the brown-haired shinobi muttered, releasing Eri, “Kaname, come on, we’ve got to find her.”

“I’m coming, too!” Eri insisted.

“It’s your fault if anything happens to her, so why don’t you just go and relay the news to Kaede or better yet, Hayato?” Saito snapped.

“Saito, calm down,” Kaname said, placing a hand on the teen’s shoulder. “I’m sure she’s fine. There’s no need to get angry with Eri. She’s just trying to help.”

Saito didn’t reply. He merely gave Eri another glare before stating, “Fine. But I’m still blaming you if something happens to her!”

_I know I shouldn’t have listened to her,_ Eri’s forehead crinkled in worry.  _How could I have been so stupid?_

-

“Hey, that’s looking pretty good, un,” Deidara remarked as Akira added the final seasonings to her dish. “I didn’t know you could make chicken stir fry!”

“Just full of surprises, I guess,” she replied proudly. Kidnapped or not, that wasn’t going to stop her from cooking her favorite foods, even if most of the ingredients came from a can or the freezer. Apparently, fresh food wasn’t a luxury they could afford here.

“What’s the smell?” The two blondes turned to see Kakuzu and Hidan standing in the doorway. “What the hell? She can cook, too?”

“I haven’t eaten since 7:30 this morning.” Akira frowned. “And would you two mind leaving? I didn’t make anything for you.”

“Well—”

“Oi, Akira, can I borrow you for a second?” Kisame stepped in before the Jashinist could begin his usual slur of profanities.

“Fine.” Sighing, Akira shot the two immortals a glare and menacingly held out her chopsticks before following Kisame into the spacious Akatsuki main room.

“You’re certainly adjusting quickly,” the shark remarked.

“You didn’t call me out here just to make comments, did you?”

“No, of course not,” Kisame grinned, revealing his shark-like teeth. “Would you mind following me? There’s someone who could use your assistance.”

_These people get injured that quickly?_  Wordlessly, Akira nodded and followed after the former Mist ninja.  _I wonder what happened._

As she and Kisame reached their destination, facts came together in her head.  _Wait, don’t tell me…_

Two rooms down from where she’d woken up, Kisame stopped, gripped the handle with his massive hand, and flung the door open.

“Itachi-san, I wasn’t kidding when I said I’d drag a healer in here if you didn’t do something!”

Akira’s lavender eyes narrowed. So this was Itachi’s room.

The layout was similar to the one she’d woken up in, with the exception of a small overstuffed bookshelf to the left of the bed. At the moment, the cause of her anger sat quietly on the bed reading one of the books from the shelf. The left side of his face had swollen considerably and was turning a dark shade of purple.

Akira turned to Kisame with a “You’ve got to be kidding me” look.

He shrugged. “You did it.”

Despite the injury, the Uchiha retained his usual composure as he put aside his book. If he wasn’t training, Itachi always read when she found him alone.

Itachi then turned his body so that his feet were over the side of the bed while she grudgingly sat down next to him.

“Do you mind?” the blonde shot a “go away” glance at Kisame.

The shark ignored her. “I’m staying here to make sure you don’t try to kill him again.”

“Fine.” Sighing, Akira turned to deal with her handiwork. Bringing a chakra-filled hand to the sharigan user’s cheek, she began her treatment. The bruise was more severe than anticipated, but it wasn’t hard to heal. Within minutes, the swelling completely vanished and Itachi’s skin color returned to normal. Now came the hard part…

Changing her position to sit behind him, Akira moved her chakra-filled hand to Itachi’s shoulder.

“Your face wasn’t the only thing you injured,” Akira said before Kisame could demand what she was doing. “That wall wasn’t dented for nothing.”

_Perceptive._ Apparently, rage hadn’t completely blinded her.

“That should do it,” the Hyuuga girl murmured, stopping the chakra flow as she turned to Kisame. “Can we go now?”

“If you like.” The shark glanced at his partner, hoping to see some trace of emotion, but found none. The two left, and the Uchiha resumed his reading.

Akira fumed to herself as she and Kisame headed down the hallway toward Akatsuki’s main room.

“So what’s your relation to Itachi?” he inquired. They were alone now, so she didn't have to worry about anyone else overhearing.

“Nothing of importance.” Here they went again. First Deidara, now Kisame.

“I wouldn’t call those injuries he had nothing. You do realize he let you hit him, right?”

Akira paused, momentarily breaking the flow of her stride, which Kisame noticed. “I’m aware,” she replied coolly. She tried to ignore it, but after all those times she sparred him, she knew he’d taken the hit willingly.

“What’d he do to piss you off then? Itachi’s got more people out to kill him than anyone I know, but I’ve never seen him purposely take a hit from one of them.” He paused. “Especially a kunoichi’s equivalent to a bitch slap.”

Akira's expression made it clear she did not want to reply.  Nonetheless, she said, “If you must know, I saved his life.”

The blue-skinned man laughed disbelievingly. “That was you?”

“Define ‘that.’”

“I knew Itachi couldn’t have survived a fall like that by himself, but damn… I wouldn’t have expected someone like you to find him.” Kisame shook his head. “How long was he with you?”

“The entire time. Don’t worry about what I know. He barely told me anything more than his name. I didn’t even know this organization existed until earlier today.”

The shark chuckled. “I’m not as worried about that, but I can’t figure out why you hate him so much. Assuming you're not his ex or anything.”

A sardonic grin twisted onto Akira’s lips. “Living with him wasn’t that bad, actually. He was quiet most of the time and didn’t eat a lot.”

“Go on.” Kisame was definitely curious.

“Sure he could be annoying, but what pissed me off the most was when I woke up one morning and he was just gone.” She spoke more matter-of-factly than Kisame expected. “Without a warning, he just vanished.”

“Well, he is a genjutsu master.” Kisame attempted a joke as they neared the Akatsuki main room, earning an eye roll from Akira.

“I’m still angry,” she muttered, making her way back to the kitchen.  Her eyes narrowed when Hidan came into view. That silver-haired creep was eating her food!

Grabbing the nearest object, a wooden spoon, she smacked the chopsticks from the immortal’s hand.

“Bitch!” he cursed. “What the hell—?”

“I fucking told you that was for me!” she cut off, angrily waving her “weapon.”

Kisame, still in the main room, exchanged looks with Kakuzu, both of them thinking the same thing.

“I give it a week before someone kills her,” Kisame sighed, shaking his head.

Kakuzu scoffed. “I give it an hour.”


	17. Chapter 17

“Bed time already?” Akira questioned, surprised. “It’s barely 9:30!” And here she’d thought a criminal organization like this would be more rebellious.

Apparently though, she’d been kidnapped at a convenient time. Their leader hadn’t assigned anyone missions the past few days, so she had been able to meet everyone. Although the one named Zetsu did have a tendency to disappear and reappear at the most random of times.

After nearly getting into a fight with a silver-haired man, Kakuzu somehow convinced Hidan to play poker with Kisame and him instead of trying to kill the new girl.

“Fucking penny pincher,” Hidan muttered. Kakuzu had won the game.

High in spirits, Kakuzu gathered his winnings and trotted away to his room for some private accounting.

Muttering another slur of profanities, Hidan shouldered his scythe-like weapon and disappeared into the dark hallway after his partner, probably to conduct some sort of ritual.

“Be careful around Hidan unless you want to end up being sacrificed for his god,” Deidara called from across the room. “Because he will kill you and likely desecrate your remains.”

The former Iwa nin passed the time molding pieces of clay into sculptures while reclining on one of the sofas. Akira had to admit he was pretty good at sculpting.

“Katsu!” Deidara tossed the figurine into the air, his right hand forming a seal. His creation exploded.

“What the hell?” Akira coughed through the smoke. What was this idiot thinking blowing things up indoors?!

Right. S-ranked criminal, missing nin, one of the most feared—undoubtedly came with a few mental problems.

“Now that is art!” Deidara declared, grinning. “Nothing is meant to last!”

“I think you should lock her up for the night before she gets any ideas,” Kisame spoke up.

Deidara frowned at the lack of appreciation. “Fine.”

Before Akira knew it, Deidara dragged her out of the main room and escorted her back in the direction from which she’d come.

“Oh yeah, and feel free to use whatever you find in Konan’s room,” Deidara added.

“Honestly?”

“If she says anything, just tell her it was Tobi’s fault.” Despite the friendly smile, he gave her a not-so-friendly shove into Konan’s room. The door clicked shut, and she was locked in.

“Good night.” Her captor’s footsteps slowly grew softer as he headed to his own room.

“Night, asshole,” Akira muttered back, heading for the bathroom. She needed a shower.

Akira let out a sigh of relief as the hot water cascaded down her back, murmuring words of relief when she found everything she needed. After finishing her shower, she found an unused toothbrush in the cabinet, brushed her teeth, and then proceeded to the other room and began rummaging through the dresser in hopes of finding some nightclothes. And a hairbrush.

“Just tell her it’s Tobi’s fault,” Akira quoted as she slipped into a loose pair of black pants and the only t shirt she could find.

_Almost everything in there looks incredibly tight and revealing_. She couldn’t quite work up the courage to check the closet for anything else. To complete her duties, Akira set an alarm (thankfully the clock had one), turned out the light and stumbled over to the bed.

Like it or not, she was stuck here, that stupid Uchiha only a few doors away from her. Sure, he’d stayed in his room after their episode in the main room, but just knowing he was around bothered her.

_I should really just get over it. I got my revenge, didn’t I?_

Then again, weighing what he’d done verses a punch in the face, Akira knew she was far from over it, even with the humiliation she’d cost him.

_“You do realize he let you hit him, don’t you?”_  Kisame’s words rang through her head. Obviously, but why? When they had trained, Itachi never allowed her an easy hit without some sort of payback.

_Damn it, Itachi,_  Akira sighed, w _hy can’t I get you out of my head?_  She should be worrying about her friends right now. Did they even realize she was missing?

Akira rolled onto her side, warm and comfortable under the comforter. Escape plans were hopeless. She was no match for one of these men, let alone all seven of them.

_Maybe I’ll live to see nineteen._  Her next birthday was quite a ways away. She wanted to at least make it that far.

At last, exhaustion overtook the kunoichi as the remainder of her consciousness slipped away. She slept, unaware of what events the following day would hold.

-

A beeping noise awoke Akira as numb hands fumbled their way to the source. Her fingers rested on a snooze button, and she pressed, cutting off the obnoxious sound.

Her pale eyes scanned the digits on the clock.

“I’m going to be late,” she realized, about to fling off the covers to begin the day. Instead, her body froze.

“Where… am I?” she trailed off.

It hadn’t been just a bad dream. She was stuck in this place called Akatsuki, Itachi was back in her life, and she was locked in a room belonging to a female member named Konan.

After gaping some more, Akira somehow convinced her body to move again as she fulfilled her first intention. She winced as her bare feet transitioned from the warm bed to the heat-sucking floor, and continued to ignore the discomfort as she shuffled to the door.

Her hand rested over the knob, but before she could turn, a surge of chakra zapped her hand, causing her to pull away.

“A seal?” She formed the hand sign for her byakugan.

The seal wasn’t anything too complex—simple enough that she could figure out it needed a particular chakra to be released. And considering her choices, it was probably Deidara’s.

“Dammit…” the kunoichi swore as she walked back to the bed and plopped down. “I’m locked in!”

_Well, you are their prisoner,_ a small voice in the back of her head spoke up.   _What did you expect, a welcome party?_

The Hyuuga girl blankly stared at the ceiling. What a way to begin her second day in this hellhole.

-

“So let me get this straight,” Kaede reiterated, interlocking her fingers as she eyed the three ninja before her. “You think Akira was kidnapped by a man in an orange mask and his formerly injured friend with long blonde hair?”

“Do you honestly think Eri is lying?” Saito angrily motioned to the dark-haired girl. “Besides, we’ve asked around, and other people did see someone matching Eri’s description.”

“We’ve already searched around, and she’s been gone for more than twenty-four hours,” Kaname added.

“Have you searched the woods?” Kaede’s face remained indifferent.

Kaname paused. “Not thoroughly, but—“

“Do that first,  _then_  I will consider telling my brother that Akira is missing,” Kaede said sternly. “While you’re at it, take Misaki with you. You can split up into groups and search more ground that way.”

“Yes, Kaede-sensei,” Eri said quietly, and before Saito could argue further, the two girls dragged him away to find their fourth member.

Once their chakra presences were a far enough distance away, Kaede couldn’t help but sigh. She could put up a front and act like she wasn’t concerned about these three, but in light of her recent progress, she’d been worried about her blonde student for quite some time.

Akira had become so distant these past few months. She’d given no explanation as to why. Kaname and Eri had never mentioned anything, either, but they likely knew more about whatever situation it was and did not wish to hurt their teammate’s feelings.

_I hope this is all just a misunderstanding, Akira,_ Kaede thought, finally allowing the apprehension to show on her face.  _Please be alright._

_-_

Startled by a brief knocking sound, Akira jolted awake in time to realize she’d dozed off before Deidara threw open the door and pulled the kunoichi to her feet.

“Is there a problem…?” Akira trailed off. The look in his eye unnerved her.

“Our leader is here to see you, un,” Deidara said simply as he dragged her out of Konan’s room more quickly than she would have liked.

“Why did you lock me up all day? I thought you said it was okay for me to wander around as long as you were watching me—”

“Apparently, Pein-sama disagrees and he wants to actually see you before allowing any freedom. Need I remind you where we are?” They were nearing the entrance to the hallway leading to the main room, and then the large dark room filled with odd-looking statues.

_Is that where he’s taking me?_ Akira wondered. “Are you going to get in trouble for brining me here without permission?” she asked aloud.

Deidara shrugged. “We’ll see.”

Akira could already feel everyone’s chakra presences as she and Deidara passed through the main room and ended up in what she liked to call the statue room, where each member perched on a different finger. Tobi, Zetsu, Kisame and even Itachi were all there along with two unfamiliar presences. Deidara jumped onto the only remaining space to join them.

The first unknown was a woman that, in the current lighting, looked to be in her late twenties to early thirties. Her amber eyes were dead and emotionless, similar to Itachi’s, and a portion of her shoulder-length blue hair was fashioned in a bun to the side of her head. A large white rose obscured most of her hairdo. Despite the lip piercing and heavy eye shadow, she had what most would call a pretty face. She must be Konan.

The second unfamiliar presence was a man with an equally stoic expression and spiky orange hair. His pale face was covered with multiple piercings including three on either side of his nose, snake bites, and at least six different earrings per ear.

“I see everyone has arrived,” Pein's icy tone rang out, sending chills down Akira's spine. “Let us commence.”

No one moved.

“Normally, I wouldn’t hold a meeting for something so fickle,” he began, “but since we currently have another person with us today, we must decide what to do about her.”

“What are you proposing?” Deidara quirked an eyebrow.

‘A simple vote among the seven of you. I know nothing about this kunoichi other than what I have heard from Deidara and Tobi.”

“Do you honestly think we’d know anything more? She’s only been here for a little over a day,” Kakuzu frowned.

“Possibly no,” Pein’s cold gaze met the Hyuuga girl’s with a look that could ice over hell, “but you are the ones who will be dealing with her.”

“So basically we vote yes is we want to keep her, and no if we don’t?” Zetsu’s white side spoke up. Akira felt something in her stomach drop with dread.

“Deidara, since you brought her in, you may vote first,” Pein turned to the clay nin.

“Well, if I said no, it’d be a waste of my effort. I vote yes, un.”

“Tobi?”

“How could I say no to Akira-san?” The Uchiha was probably grinning again.

“Hidan?”

“Fuck no!” the Jashinist bellowed, making Akira wince. “That little bitch doesn’t know her place.”

“Kakuzu?”

“For once I agree with Hidan. Besides, we don’t need another mouth to feed.”

“Zetsu?”

“Nah. She’ll die within the first week anyway,” his black side said.

“Either way we get to eat her,” his white side added.

“Kisame?”

A smile crept across the sharks lips. “For my own reasons, I’ll vote yes.”

Pein turned to the final voter. “It seems you’re the deciding factor, Itachi.”

All eyes directed to the Uchiha.

_I’m dead._ Akira’s dread turned to panic.

-

Itachi resisted the urge to shake his head. Why was he always the one left with the difficult life choices?

In all honesty, he held no grudge for the scene she had caused yesterday. Even if she hadn’t healed his injuries, condemning an innocent teenager to death, and, especially one who had saved his life, was no something he wanted on his hands. If another member killed her, at least he would not be the cause.

“I’ll vote yes.” Against his better judgment, Itachi stole a glance at the clearly terrified kunoichi. At his words, her shoulders relaxed a bit.

-

_He said yes?_ Akira could hardly believe her ears. Itachi had just saved her life.

“Well then,” Pein seemed unaffected by the drama, “now that that’s decided, we have one more issue to attend.”

The room fell deathly silent.

“We must decide who will watch her the majority of the time.”

The color drained from Akira’s face again. She’d just barely escaped with her life once, and now here she was, back again.

“Any suggestions?” Glances were exchanged, and a few murmured. “Keep in mind,” Pein continued, “that whoever is elected will be sharing their room, given this particular base's lacks spare lodging.”

Murmurings stopped, and a few grinned, namely Hidan.

“And since she has been voted in as our healer, she is not to be harmed in any way,” Pein emphasized.

There was another dead silence.

“Well,” Deidara spoke up, “I’ll volunteer. I did bring her here, after all.”

“But I helped, Senpai!” Tobi whined.

“Tobi, you’re far too incompetent to even look after yourself, let along someone of the opposite sex,” Kisame frowned. “And as for you, Deidara, you’d’ probably blow her up within the first week.”

“Well, do you have any better ideas, un?” Deidara snapped. “Hidan and Kakuzu are out of the question, and Zetsu would eat her.”

“What about Itachi?” The entire room froze when the woman by Pein’s side finally spoke.

Kisame smirked. Despite his partner’s blank expression, the look in his eyes told all.  He wasn’t any keener on the idea than the fuming kunoichi below them.

Pein thought for a moment. “Itachi is the most controlled among you, and the least likely to kill someone on a whim.”

A few coughs and snickers sounded at this remark.

“No!” Akira yelled, bringing Pein’s gaze down to where she stood. “Pair me with Kisame, Deidara or for Kami’s sake even Tobi, just not him!”

Another hush fell over the room. Itachi seemed indifferent, despite the insult.

“Damn, I knew she hated him, but I didn’t expect her to do anything that stupid,” Hidan muttered.

Pein eyed the blonde with interest. “Don’t forget your place, kunoichi. This isn’t your decision to make.” Her jaw clenched. “Itachi will be the one to keep an eye on her. If he is unavailable, that will be your job, Deidara, and if Konan and I are away, she may reside in Konan’s room. Otherwise, she will reside with Itachi,” Pein concluded. “Meeting dismissed.”

It took every ounce of self-control Akira had not to argue and to instead walk away toward the main room. The other members soon followed, and, unsure of what else to do, Akira plopped down on one of the sofas.

“I can’t believe we’re actually keeping this little bitch,” Hidan complained.

“You’ve said this at least a million times already,” Kakuzu growled in a low voice. “Besides, in case you didn’t notice, Pein is still in the room!”

Indeed, their leader was there, but rather than glaring down Hidan for his open display of disrespect, he seemed to be examining one of the walls.

“Tell me, Deidara,” Pein said, “what damaged this wall?”

“Let’s just say it’d be a bad idea to piss of our latest member.” Deidara couldn’t resist a smirk.

“Hm.” Despite the vague answer, Pein didn’t demand any more details and continued on his way, Konan following close behind.

Soon after, the Uchiha joined them. His crimson gaze met Akira’s and for a moment the room filled with tension again until Kisame decided to speak.

“So, Itachi,” he began, “now that you’ve been assigned to watch over Akira, do you think it would be wise to observe her skill in actual combat?”

Itachi opened his mouth, but Akira interrupted, “What a  _great_ idea!” and her eyes sprang to life at the mention of training. “Where is the nearest training grounds?”

The blue man sweat-dropped when he noticed a glint of emotion in Itachi’s eyes. Thanks to Pein, his partner was about to be forced to work with someone that clearly hated him.

“Just follow me,” Kisame said, shaking his head.

-

In order to reach their desired location, Itachi and Kisame led Akira back through the creepy statue room to another side door located on the right of the cave. Much to her surprise, it led somewhere unusually bright.

“We’re outside?” Akira shielded her eyes as they adjusted.

“Technically, there’s a seal surrounding us that makes this place invisible to outside intruders,” Kisame explained.

“Like a force field?”

“Which knocks out and transports you to a different location with a convenient case of memory loss should you stray too close.”

Akira blinked in confusion. “Who developed a jutsu like that?”

The shark shrugged. “Beats me.”

“I don’t recall coming here to socialize,” Itachi cut in coolly.

Kisame shrugged. “Can’t hurt to explain a little.”

“So where should we start? Will one of you be fighting me or something?”

Her tone sounded oddly hopeful.  _She must have a death wish if she wants to fight Itachi that badly,_ Kisame thought. “I suppose so. Itachi has better control than me, so you should probably fight him.”

May as well give the girl what she wanted and see what happened.

“So,” retreating a few leaps back, Kisame made sure to be a good distance away from the two, “whenever you’re ready.”

-

As expected, Akira instantly sprang at Itachi, byakugan activated, and formed a few quick hand signs before she attacked him.

He dodged her pokes with ease thanks to his sharingan. Her increase in strength was becoming more obvious, requiring him to reciprocate with more force than he’d used before.

Itachi did a few quick hand signs of his own before his opponent managed to sneak in a hit.

He burst in a cloud of smoke. The shadow clone did little to phase Akira as her hands hurriedly forced more seals. Seconds later, a whizzing sound rang out as a kunai imbedded intself in the back of Akira’s neck, only for her to melt into a puddle of water.

_Her reflexes have improved as well. If it weren’t for my sharingan I would have missed those hand signs for her mizubunshin._

He easily liquidized the next close attacking him from behind with a solid kick before three more Akiras ran to attack him Hyuuga style. Making sure not to be caught in the middle, Itachi defeated two with taijutsu. About to move onto the third, Itachi felt three stinging pokes before the last clone was finished.

_I’m being too careless._ His face gave no indication of the hit, but his body certainly felt it. He would have to end this fight more quickly than anticipated. Her pokes had disabled his left arm, and since he was left-handed, this could prove troublesome.

Four more clones appeared in front of him, one of which was the real Akira.

Snatching an exploding tag and swiftly tying it to a kunai, Itachi threw it in the direction of his attackers and activated it with a hand sign. The former ANBU captain smirked as all but the Akira on the far right liquidized.

The Hyuuga girl failed to fully escape the shockwave of the blast, throwing her body through the air before she hit the ground with a sickening thud. She hadn’t had the time or foresight to use her rotation.

Barely giving her time to wipe the blood from her mouth, Itachi rushed back in front of her. Although he didn’t attack, they made eye contact, something Akira had been smart enough to avoid up until now.

Her surroundings didn’t change with the exception of the unpurgeable mental image of Itachi’s sharingan.

_Dammit._  Akira squeezed her eyes shut and held a hand sign.  _Please work!_

_-_

_She managed to hold her own against a half serious Itachi for this long? Impressive._ Kisame thought. Judging by the way Itachi’s left arm was hanging uselessly, she’d even been skilled to hit him. Not to mention, she knew how to pull water out of the air, which was quite difficult for most ninja. Despite the accomplishment, the girl looked nearly spent. To make matters worse for her, Itachi had gotten serious enough to use genjtusu rather than exclusive taijutsu or basic ninjutsu.

_It’s probably nothing too scarring, but I wonder how well she’ll react to one of Itachi’s illusions._  Kisame smirked. What could this kunoichi possibly do with what little chakra she had left?

-

Cutting off her flow of chakra was the first rule Akira remembered to countering genjutsu—Itachi had taught her this.

Akira was forced to release her control over her last two clones as she concentrated, rendering them into supposedly useless pools of water.

_It worked!_ The image of Itachi’s sharingan disappeared from her mind.  _This is my last jutsu, then._  Jumping away from the Uchiha who had previously been staring her down, Akira performed the hand signs for her final attack.  _I’d better have enough chakra for this!_

Regathering the water from her fallen clones and then some, Akira took a deep breath and exhaled.

“Water element! Shock wave jutsu!”

Itachi’s deadpan stare only infuriated her more as the wave of water rose and headed for the raven-haired shinobi. He gracefully jumped upward to dodge the incoming flood, which crashed, before he landed on the now wet ground with a muffled splash.

“I’m not done yet!” Akira yelled, breathing heavily as her numbing hands formed the finishing seals.

Slowly, clouds of heat rose from the water pooling around Itachi’s nail-painted toes. Akira was using the last of her chakra to turn the water into ice.

By the time Itachi realized the extension of her jutsu, it was too late, and the ice had already trapped one of his feet. However, Akira barely made it three steps before she collapsed, her chakra exhausted.0

Kisame chuckled from the sidelines.  Within the course of a few seconds, Itachi released his foot from the ice and collectedly strode over to the fallen Hyuuga.

“You’ve mastered the mizubushin, I see.” His condescending look wasn’t making her feel any better, but at the moment Akira was too tired to care. He added, “The extension of your jutsu was quite original. Still, you need to learn your limits. Many ninja die unnecessarily because they do not know this.” Akira rolled her eyes. There he went acting like her teacher again.

Despite the pain, Akira forced herself to her knees, beads of sweat stinging her vision. She wobbled to her feet without help but, much to her chagrin, ended up briefly using Itachi’s shoulder for support.

_Damn my weak body!_ Akira gritted her teeth as they headed over to Kisame.

“Not bad, kunoichi,” Kisame remarked with a toothy grin. “That was more than I expected from you.”

With whatever pride she had left, Akira smiled wryly and turned back to Itachi. “By the way, the feeling should return to your left arm within the next half hour.”

“Hn.” Of course, his standard blank answer. What, no witty comeback or remark?

“Yeah, that’s nice and all, but would you three mind getting off?” The trio turned to see a familiar blonde and Tobi standing at the entrance of the training room. “It’s our turn here.”

Akira opened her mouth to protest, but Kisame stopped her.

“We were just leaving, anyway.” He and Itachi hadn’t gotten a chance to train, but they would have plenty of opportunities later.

“Asshole,” Akira muttered, to which Kisame chuckled. Her cursing was already beginning to rival Hidan’s.

-

 “Any sign of Akira?” Kaede inquired, trying not to sound nervous to Kaname, Eri, Saito and now Misaki. Sadly, their expressions said enough.

“No sign of her,” Kaname replied, downcast. “We found blood and traces of a struggle, but the blood wasn’t Akira’s.”

“Do you know how many were involved in the struggle?”

“Just the three of them, judging by the footprints,” Misaki said.

Kaede interlocked her fingers over her desk. “I will report Akira missing to my brother then. Likely, we are dealing with missing ninja. This sort of people often kidnap or murder those that heal them to avoid being found.”

 “There were only two sets of footprints leading away from the village,” Eri admitted. “If these really are missing nins we’re dealing with, then Akira—”

 “We have to believe that she’s alive!” Saito interjected. The rest of them shifted uncomfortably.

“Let’s not jump to conclusions,” Kaede stated calmly, “The most we can do right now is look.”

“We’ll find her,” Eri assured, trying to comfort both herself and her friends.

The older woman nodded curtly. “If need be, I will request another squad to help you.”

The four ninja left, giving Kaede a moment to herself. Worry lined formed on her brow as the healer pondered the report. Her gaze wandered out a window beside her desk. She felt useless. One of her students was nowhere to be found, and all she could do was sit there. Worse yet, she couldn’t officially send out a search party without Hayato’s permission, and save for Eri’s descriptions, there were no leads.

_Where are you, Akira?_ Her emotions were getting the better of her. One kunoichi’s disappearance should not bother her this much.

But it did.

-

After training, Akira returned to the main room with her escorts to find Hidan and Kakuzu back in the main room. And Hidan’s uniform was covered in blood…

“I’m changing!” the Jashinist announced irritably, strutting out of the room.

“Ever the drama queen,” Kakuzu muttered, continuing on about something regarding how much money it cost to keep replacing uniforms.

Akira felt very awkward.

“What?” Kakuzu snapped, bringing Akira out of her trance.

“Nothing,” she said quickly.  _I hope I wasn’t staring._

When Hidan returned, some of the awkwardness died down after Kisame suggested a poker game with the two immortals. Itachi declined the offer and disappeared to his room, leaving Akira back to feeling out of place.

_What the hell am I supposed to do?_

Yesterday, she’d watched the game from afar while making sure to keep out of everyone’s way. Today, she wasn’t too keen of standing there bored to death. It was only afternoon.

“Hey, kunoichi,” Kisame called, “every play cards before?”

“No.” It took a great deal of control not to stutter.

“We’ve got an empty seat. Care to join?”

Akira paused, casting uncertain glances at Hidan and Kakuzu. They had just voted for her death earlier today…

“Okay.” She offered them a friendly smile before taking the empty seat between Kisame and Hidan.

_This should be interesting._

She managed through the first game without anyone’s blood being drawn, although after several games, Kakuzu seemed close. The older man had just accused his partner of cheating, and, though he likely hadn’t, Hidan clearly loved to argue.

Now, Kisame was stuck in the middle of their fight, and she was just trying to remain inconspicuous. Glancing at a nearby clock, Akira realized it was nighttime already.

_Well that time flew by._ Cautiously inching away from the table, Akira felt her muscles scream in protest. The day’s training activities were beginning to take their toll.

“Tch. Kakuzu, you fucking penny pincher!” Hidan snapped. “Don’t accuse me of cheating just because you lost.”

“Nothing escapes my eyes.”

“Shut up. You sound like Itachi.”

Akira winced at the mention of the Uchiha’s name.

“I guess we’re calling it quits then,” Kisame muttered, beginning his share of the cleanup.

Akira had been smart enough to back away from the table before an actual fistfight broke out. Unfortunately for him, Kisame remained in the middle.

 Dodging one of Kakuzu’s tendril attacks, Kisame dashed over to Akira, grabbed her waist and dragged her into the dark hallway, slamming the door behind them. The shark turned to see the girl’s reaction when he released her.

“I’m guessing this happens a lot.” Her eyes were wide.

“You get used to it. The walls aren’t made of stone for nothing.”

Akira shook her head as a muffled crash sounded, followed by more yelling.

“Pein did order you to be left in Itachi’s care,” Kisame reminded, “and since Deidara and Tobi left for a mission this afternoon, that leaves me to bring you to him.”

“Hmf. Fine.” Too soon, they reached that despised room.

“Sleep well.” His tone mocked as he opened the door and, like Deidara, shoved her inside. Kami, were all these Akatsuki alike? “I know you hate Itachi, but please try not to kill him.”

The Uchiha’s room hadn’t changed since the last time she’d last visited, although his choice of literature had. Crimson eyes darted in her direction. It was odd, considering most of her memories consisted of a black-eyed Itachi.

Trying to ignore his piercing stare, Akira turned her gaze to the wall.

“I’m showering,” she finally said.

“Konan came by earlier with a change of clothes.” Itachi returned his attention to the book.

“I see.” That would explain the small pile of garments in the corner that she highly doubted belonged to her new roommate. Akira quickly gathered what she wanted and disappeared into the bathroom.

-

Itachi let out a sigh once the bathroom door closed. He hadn’t exactly been looking forward to this. He’d already endured the humiliation of letting her punch him. Why did he need to do this, as well?

He’d managed to finish the next section of his book when a refreshed Hyuuga clad in baggier clothes emerged. Her damp blonde hair was down now, and her outfit from earlier was tucked under her arm.

Setting down her things in the same corner, she turned back to the Uchiha, hands on her hips.

“Look,” she began, “I didn’t ask for this, and I’m not any happier about it than I’d image you are.” How kind of her to state the utterly obvious. “So what’s the plan?” One of her fingers nervously fiddled with a lock of wet hair. “You get the bed and I’m on the floor?”

“No.” Tossing her a pillow, Itachi stood up. “You’ll only be here half the time. You get the bed.”

Catching the pillow, Akira blinked in confusion. It was understandable. He was not particularly known for kindness.

“Surprisingly gentlemanly of you.”

The corner of his mouth twitched. “What else do you want?”

Her lavender eyes narrowed.

Itachi knew a huge part of him detested the guilt he felt for what he did. He had enough trouble with everything else as it was, nor he did not share in Kisame’s sentiments of “Drink until it feels like you did the right thing.”

She scoffed. Never a good sign.

“Oh, I don’t know…” More heavy sarcasm. “Maybe an apology?”

“For what, pray tell?”

“Do you want a fucking list?!” Judging by the way her voice cracked, she was on the verge of tears.

“Indulge me.” Here went nothing.

“For starters, how about leaving without so much as a goodbye?”

“And tell you what? That I’m returning to Akatsuki?”

“You sound ashamed of it!” she snapped. A tear escaped.

“Had I said anything, your life could have been endangered.”

She scoffed. “Didn’t know you cared.” She turned away in a futile attempt to hide her crying. “What, did you think I’d suddenly hate you and decide to turn you in if I knew you were from an S ranked organization?”

“Yes.” Had she honestly expected a no?

“Well, I hate you now! I didn’t want your stupid money, not to mention you caused a TON of misunderstandings with my friends, made me lie to my teacher—”

“I never said you had to lie.”

“Kissed me in the middle of the fucking _street_  just because you didn’t want Kisame to see you,” she continued, “before leaving in the middle of the night without so much as a word!”

Itachi could only stare. Tears streamed freely down her cheeks, and Itachi could see her hands twitching to cover the display. But she stood her ground, tears and all.

He definitely hadn’t done the right thing, but what could he say?

“I’m going to sleep.” Akira flung the pillow back at him before heading toward the door and turning off the light. Once in darkness, he could still hear sniffling as she shuffled to the bed.

Throwing the pillow to the floor, Itachi allowed himself to feel frustrated, as well. Akira somehow seemed to sense his turmoil, amid her own.

“We can’t just keep pretending nothing happened,” she whispered. The sound of her voice bothered him—that stifled, teary sound that screamed she was still tremendously upset.

“Hn.”

She scoffed again, muttering, “Typical.” How she hated that nondescript answer he always gave. But no one was watching them. Whatever he did now didn’t have to leave the room. Now on his knees beside the bed, Itachi noted the girl’s back quivering from stifled sobs.

And with that, he did something most missing nin would consider very stupid.

Itachi stretched out a hand and stiffly made contact with her shoulder. Akira froze, mechanically turning to see coal black eyes staring back her. Even in the darkness, she could sense the remorse in their dark abyss.

“I’m sorry, Akira.”

He spoke quietly, and at first he wondered if she’d actually heard him. But, a few seconds later, she bit her lip, more tears welling her eyes.

She jumped forward and threw her arms around his neck, still sobbing as she knocked both of them to the floor. He froze with shock at first, but quickly recovered and reciprocated the embrace.

They rose to their knees, bodies pressed together.

-

It was strange to be back in Itachi’s arms after hating him for so long. She felt oddly safe crying on his shoulder. She hadn’t broken down in front of him like this since the Tsukuyomi incident, and, even now, his reaction was the same. He pulled her close and let her cry, his chin resting lightly atop her head. By the time she finished, the Uchiha’s shirt was splotchy and wet.

“Sorry,” Akira breathed, suddenly feeling self-conscious. Wiping the last few droplets from her eyes, she and Itachi separated.

“I still hate you,” she choked.

“I know.” Her shock only deepened when a calloused thumb brushed away a streak she had missed. Akira shook her head.

“You confuse me.”

“Good.” The warmth in his tone vanished, and the cold Itachi returned. “We should be getting to bed.”

Despite the crying, Akira smiled as she stood up and fully removed herself from Itachi’s warmth. Itachi looked about to continue setting up his bedding when she stopped him.

“You know, you don’t have to sleep on the floor…”

“It’s fine—”

“No, really.” She frowned for good measure. The floor can’t be good for your back, and you already have enough health issues as it is—”

“Fine.” He gave in before she could say anything too stupid. Perhaps he’d only been trying to be considerate. Besides, this wouldn’t be the first time they slept in the same bed.

Itachi collapsed next to the Hyuuga girl in an exhausted heap.

“Happy now?” Good to know he hadn’t completely lost his sense of humor.

“Good night, Itachi.”

Taking advantage of her closed eyes, Itachi allowed himself a small smile.

Exhausted from crying and the day’s events, she fell asleep almost immediately. Itachi quietly observed. He felt odd, knowing someone cared enough to think him worth crying over. Almost like he had his little brother back. Although clearly, the bond he and Akira shared was far from anything siblings related.

_Better stop myself there._ The last thing he needed was another emotional stumbling block.

-

Twin yellow eyes watched as the Uchiha drifted off to sleep, unconsciously embracing Akira.

_“Interesting. I’ve never seen Itachi like this before,”_ Zetsu’s black side remarked.

_“Tobi-sama will be interested to hear this,”_ his white side added. “ _I’ve never seen Itachi react like that to anything.”_

_“Idiot! This isn’t a good thing,”_ Black Zetsu chided. “ _She could easily become an unnecessary distraction.”_

_“Still, Itachi-san looks oddly content, considering his usual nightmares.”_

Black Zetsu rolled his eye.  _“We will see what Tobi-sama wants us to do, if anything.”_


	18. Chapter 18

_Zuzuzuzuzu_

A dark figure stood in the middle of a still forest, his blonde partner fast asleep beside him. A lone red eye pierced the darkness around them.

“Zetsu,” his tone sounded cool and composed, like an Uchiha’s should. “What’s the word on our new healer?”

“You were right, Tobi-sama,” his black side said, “there is something between Itachi and her.”

“Romantically?”

The aloe vera shook his head. “No, but it could easily develop.”

“What about her combat abilities?”

“She’s strong, but still has a long way to go if she wants to survive here.”

“Hey, I thought she was pretty good!” White Zetsu argued.

“Fool. Itachi was going easy!”

Obito raised an eyebrow. “Does Itachi appear to feel something for her?”

Both sides shrugged. “After having a nice little lover’s spat, they had no problem sharing the same room,” White Zetsu admitted.

“Hm.” Tobi’s fingers brushed across his covered chin in a thinking pose. He’d already listened to the latest gossip regarding his former student’s dealings with the girl, but he’d thought it more of a “take what I need and then leave” scenario. Although recent events were beginning to prove otherwise.

“Would you like us to dispose of her before things get out of hand?” Black Zetsu offered.

“Answer me this,” Tobi began, “Does Itachi seem to trust her in any way?” Coexistence was one thing. Trust was another.

A pregnant pause filled the air.

“No.” Both sides said in unison.

“Then no, Zetsu, we will leave her be for the time being,” the true Akatsuki leader concluded. “But keep an eye on her and inform me should anything ‘funny’ occur.”

“Yes, Tobi-sama.”

_“You do realize we just lied, right?”_ White Zetsu frowned.

_“Shut up. Neither of us know for sure, so technically you could call it an educated guess. Besides, you’re the one that didn’t want to tell him the first place.”_

_“Whatever you say.”_

-

Akira awoke with a jolt at the sound of a dull thump. Straining her eyes to open, the healer found herself in an unfamiliar room.

_What the hell?_  Sitting up, she scanned the area before realizing that thump had been someone turning off the shower.

The previous night came rushing back. Glancing at the spot next to her, Akira found the pillowed neatly smoothed and what she hadn’t disrupted of the covers unrumpled.

Well, Itachi had been awake for quite some time.

Yawning, Akira peeled off the covers and rotated her body so that her feet touched the floor.

_I guess I have no reason to hate him now._ A smile graced her lips, Itachi’s apology replaying in her head. She giggled. Talk about a serious out of character moment.

Less than a second after her outburst, the bathroom door swung open to reveal a water-glistened and otherwise shirtless Itachi. He was wearing pants, but seemed to have forgotten to bring a shirt.

Every drop of blood in her body suddenly seemed to migrate to her face.

Appearing completely unaware of her presence, Itachi strode over to his dresser and pulled out a familiar mesh shirt that he usually wore beneath his uniform. After putting on the material, Itachi turned to face her.

“I was wondering when you would decide to wake up.”

Her face burned red. Dammit, wasn’t she supposed to be immune to this sort of thing by now?

_Blame the scars,_  she reasoned. Normal people didn’t have Itachi’s background, not that she knew much about it, anyway.

“Don’t change the subject.” She frowned as he put on his shoes and then the pale gray Akatsuki legwarmers. Striding over to her, he picked up his trademark necklace resting on the nightstand and attached it before speaking again.

“This is my room.”

_Remind me to never to pick a fight with someone in their home territory._

“Well, I’m changing. Don’t you dare come into the bathroom!” she glared, although why she talked to Itachi’s back as he fastened his uniforms was beyond her.

Snatching her ninja outfit from its designated corner, Akira disappeared into the bathroom just as Itachi finished tying on his scratched out leaf headband.

Sighing, Itachi took a seat on the bed to wait for her.  Surprisingly, the two of them made it to the main room only a few minutes later than Itachi’s usual time. Quite a feat, considering Akira’s tendency to lag.

-

Kisame observed the two with watchful eyes as they entered the main room. Surprisingly, neither one seemed to bear any visible injury.

Akira wordlessly headed to the kitchen to make herself a hot meal while Itachi followed to grab an apple.

“Konan wanted me to tell you we’ll be leaving for a mission once Deidara and Tobi come back,” Kisame called as his partner emerged from the kitchen. “Pein said he’d brief us on the details later.”

“Hn.” The apple crunched as Itachi took a bite.

After breakfast, Akira somehow managed to con Itachi and Kisame into training, regardless of the fact that they would be needing their strength later that day.

“It would be a good warm up,” had been his partner’s excuse, and Kisame hadn’t been able to think of a descent argument. Although, if Akira insisted on fighting Itachi, Kisame probably wouldn’t get a chance to fight until later.

Much to his amazement, when the three of them reached the training grounds, Akira suggested he and Itachi fight first because they had a mission.

_Ether she’s just trying to be considerate or she and Itachi actually made use of their time last night,_ Kisame thought suspiciously.

During the next round, which they surprisingly had time for, Kisame noted Akira didn’t go full out, also meaning she wasn’t just fighting to vent. When they returned to the main room, Deidara and Tobi were already there raiding the kitchen.

“Akira-san!” Tobi’s good boy voice rang out before the unexpecting Hyuuga girl received a solid tackle hug. “We’re finally back! Did you miss us at all?”

“You were…barely gone for more than a day, Tobi,” Akira choked, trying in vain to pry the man’s grip away from her middle.

“I think you’re hurting her, un,” Deidara said, a sweat drop above his head.

-

The former glompee gasped for air the second he released her. Then, stealing a glance at Itachi, Tobi found himself face to face with one of the coldest stares he’d ever received.

_Zetsu wasn’t kidding,_ Obito mentally chuckled at the younger Uchiha’s reaction. Feeling possessive already?

“We have a mission, so Akira’s under your watch,” Kisame seemed oblivious to all.

Itachi and Kisame disappeared to receive their orders in the statue room, where Pein and his lady awaited.

-

“It’s good to be alive!” Deidara stretched before plopping down on one of the couches. “How was your time with Itachi, un?”

“Bearable,” Akira admitted. “I wonder if it would kill him to say something other than ‘Hn’ all the time.”

“I guess that’s just the way Itachi-san is, Akira-san!” Tobi chirped.

“I suppose so. But—”

“Hyuuga Akira.” Said kunoichi jumped when another person came into the room. It was Konan.

“Shouldn’t you be with Pein?” Deidara’s only visible eye narrowed.

“I’ve been instructed otherwise,” she replied curtly.

Akira rose to meet the blue-haired woman’s gaze. “What do you want me for?”

“Follow me.”

Unnerved, the Hyuuga girl cast Deidara and Tobi a worried glance before obeying.

“Konan?”

“Yes?”

She gulped. “Doesn’t this lead to the training grounds?”

“I see you’re already learning your way around.” Stare unchanging, Konan kept walking.

_Wow. She’s almost as bad as Itachi._

Now at their new destination, Akira nervously shifted her weight from foot to foot as she waited for Konan to turn around and say something.

Without warning, a blur of white charged at her, slamming her body against one of the walls a few yards back.

_What the hell?!_ Saliva spewed from her mouth as the wind was knocked out of her.

Akira formed a familiar hand sign.  _Byakugan!_

The stoic woman stretched out a hand. “Your reaction time could be improved.”

_Yep, definitely Itachi._  Rolling her eyes, Akira sped toward her while executing a few more hand signs. No doubt about it, she was either picking a fight or Pein has ordered her to test Akira’s combat abilities.

“Only an amateur attacks their opponent head on,” Konan said, once again using the “white blur” to attack her.

Contact was made, but rather than a responding thump, only a splash of water resulted.

“A replacement?” Konan’s blank stare remained unchanging. Out of her peripherals, she detected a glimpse of Akira, about to land an attack from behind

_Splash!_ Nothing more than a water clone.

Looking mildly annoyed, the paper kunoichi already sensed Akira’s next attack. As a cloud of kunai and shuriken sped toward her, but she effortlessly shielded herself.

_Weapons don’t work against her?_ Akira’s eyebrows knitted together in frustration. Well, at least she had managed to figure out a few things. For one, Konan’s attacks heavily relied on that jutsu of hers—paper, by the looks of it. It came from her body, and she was able to bend it to her will. Akira had yet to detect any weakness in the jutsu.

Dodging an attack from the right and executing a few back hand springs to give her some distance, Akira barely had time to whip out a kunai to slice away the next barrage of paper.

Overwhelmed, she failed to continue defending herself and ended up being painfully thrown back yet again.  _This isn’t working_. Head spinning and back leaning against the wall she’d just collided with, Akira attempted to think of a new plan.

_Let’s see: Konan uses paper, which is an earth type jutsu,_  Akira mused, forcing her body to stand as she wielded another kunai. _The only element that weakens earth is fire or lightning, which I can’t use. All I have is water, which is weak against earth._

Well, things were already interesting.

Blood poured from her mouth as she failed to evade Konan’s next attack, resulting in her exhausted body being picked up by the ankle and slammed into the ground.

_Think, Akira, think!_  Through blurred vision, she glared at the blue-haired woman with her bykaugan.  _If I could get close to her for long enough, I could use my gentle fist, but with her ninjutsu that serves as both offense and defense, I’m doomed._

Akira struggled to get back up this time.

_How can I do this?_

“Had enough?” Konan’s deadpan voice rang out.

She smirked, this time managing to rise to her feet. “Never.” She took another stance as the next clump of paper rushed toward her. But this time, she’d been given enough time to prepare.

“Rotation!” The sphere of blue energy surrounded the Hyuuga, this time shielding her. She hadn’t used this move in her first fight with Itachi because she’d wanted to make sure she’d had enough chakra to use her shockwave jutsu, and also because she hadn’t felt the need at the time.

_When Itachi fights me, part of him is still holding back_. Akira formed her next hand sign.  _I don’t think Konan has the same mentality._

Using her chakra, she began pulling water out of the atmosphere. Konan was still throwing some paper at her, but not with everything she had.

_What is she waiting for?_

“Water element! Shock wave jutsu!” As the wave behind her increased in size, the Hyuuga girl jumped aboard and used her hands to direct its movement toward the awaiting paper kunoichi.

As expected, she sealed herself in a shelter of paper before the wave crashed over her.

_Here goes nothing._ Sliding in a figure eight pattern toward Konan, Akira’s hands formed more seals.

The continuation of the jutsu commented, and the water began to freeze. Just in time, Konan began cracking open her shell, seemingly unaware of what was to come.

Noticing the ice crackling beneath her feet, the blue-haired kunoichi was about to act when, for a split second, she found she couldn’t move. And a split second was all Akira needed.

Face to face with her opponent, Akira used her shockwave jutsu once again, soaking the paper kunoichi. Then, using more chakra than before to expedite the process, Akira froze the water.

Just as Konan broke free of the ice, Akira preformed her first gentle fist combination, knocking her opponent back. The Hyuuga girl pursued, not allowing the woman a second to recover.

“Sixty-four points!” Adding a bit more chakra to her last hit, Akira watched the Akatsuki fly back yet again and slam against the wall. She slid down into an awkward sitting position. Her half paper half flesh body shook, indicating either shock, injury or both.

Through the uncontrollable panting, Akira smiled to herself in satisfaction. That had been the last of her chakra. Her eyes remained locked on the blue-haired woman. Konan had already pushed herself to her feet, her hands locked in a seal.

_Oh shit…_

It began with small, seemingly harmless pieces of butterfly origami fluttering around them. Too tired to flee, Akira stood frozen in place, save for the occasional light-headed swaying.

The air filled with the origami butterflies. She was surrounded.

Finally, Konan dropped her hand dramatically in a straight line, and Akira subsequently felt each individual butterfly cut her, stinging like nothing she’d ever felt before.

With no chakra left to defend herself, Akira could only stand there. She squeezed shut her eyes, tucked her chin and hugged her midsection, trying to protect her vitals, but even with everything vital intact, it fucking hurt.

A scream tore through the air. She couldn’t endure much more.

After what felt like an eternity, the pain subsided. Cracking open one eye, she observed some of her torturers returning to their maker. Seconds later, the air cleared completely, and, with nothing holding her, Akira collapsed.

Through blurred vision, she saw Konan heading toward her, probably to finish the job. The healer turned her attention back to the ground. Ah well, at least she’d managed to do her fair share of damage to the Akatsuki.

_Didn’t I just do this a few days ago?_

“Your pain tolerance is impressive, although I’ve seen better,” Konan stated, now only a few feet away. “Your strategies and jutsu could use work, as well.”

Akira inwardly groaned. The monologue only angered her more.

Konan continued, “But—”

“Don’t underestimate me!” she snapped, jumping to her feet, a kunai clutched in her palm. Her body felt numb as she ran to make more distance between them. Thankfully, the numbness made great compensation for the amount of pain she was in.

A  _thump_  resounded through the area, and the next thing Akira knew, she lay spread eagle on the ground, finding it oddly difficult to breathe.

Not bothering to finish her critique, Konan turned her back and made her way to the entrance, stray pieces of paper reattaching themselves to her as she walked.

Akira knew she was losing consciousness as blood trickled from her wounds.

_How am I supposed to get out of here?_ And on that thought, Akira passed out.

-

“Akira? Come on kunoichi, wake up!” It was Deidara’s voice.

_What the hell?_

“Ah, she’s waking up!” Tobi exclaimed.

Forcing her oddly heavy eyes open, pain shot through her head and every muscle in her body as she tried to move.

“We found you in the training room. What happened?” Deidara’s only visible eye twinkled with concern, his masked partner babbling with the same emotion.

 “The last time I saw you, you left with Konan,” Deidara stated. “And these marks look like her handiwork. Did she do this to you?”

Akira averted her gaze. He somehow knew that meant yes.

 “That’s is, I’m blowing her up, un,” Deidara declared. “First Itachi, and now this. What is with the organization and these self-righteous—”

“Deidara,” Akira interjected. “Pein ordered her to test my combat abilities. She was just doing her job.”

“By leaving your body splayed out on the training grounds?”

“I’m not a guest here, remember? She has the right to treat me however she wants. Weren’t you the one telling this not so long ago?”

“Um,” Tobi’s voice turned both blonde’s attention to the masked man. “Akira-san is still alive, isn’t she? And if she isn’t holding any grudges, I don’t think you should get so worked up about it, Senpai.”

“I never said no grudges,” Akira muttered. _Just stating the harsh reality._

Deidara sighed. “Fine.”

Akira could tell from Tobi’s posture that he was grinning.

“You’ll probably want to shower,” Deidara turned back to her. “Sorry we had to bring you back to Itachi’s room, but we really don’t have anywhere else to keep you.”

Gritting her teeth, Akira endured the pain and forced herself to sit up. A few cuts reopened at this, but she ignored them.

“Don’t concern yourself, Deidara. I’ll be fine,” Akira assured, forcing a smile. “Thank you for bringing me here.”

“Just be careful,” Deidara said, making his way to the door. Tobi followed close behind. “And Akira?” he added.

She looked at him questioningly.

“You should really shower. You look like shit.”

The door clicked shut.

“Thanks, I will,” Akira muttered, not caring if her words went unheard.

Akira nudged her body to the edge of the bed and hesitantly stood up. The stinging from the cuts made her feel like her skin was on fire, but, nonetheless, Akira made her way to the bathroom, and, once inside, made sure to lock the door.

“Damn.” Examining herself in the mirror, Akira found Deiara’s statement to be painfully true.

Her hair was caked with dirt from being dragged across the ground so many times, and, minus the cuts and bruises littering her body, she had a considerable amount of dirt covering her legs and from where her shirt had ridden up.

After slowly peeling off her ruined clothes, Akira took one final look at her battered body before turning on the shower and stumbling in.

Akira bit her hand to stifle a scream.

_Oh KAMI the water BURNS!_

She hunched over in shocked silence as the liquid began washing away the grime covering her slender form. She couldn’t just heal herself with all this junk trapped beneath her pores. The risk of infection was too high.

_Damn you, Konan._ Exhaling through her nose, Akira stood to her full height and began cleaning out her wounds with soap and water.

After nearly fifteen minutes of painful scrubbing, Akira felt clean enough to begin healing herself. Then, breathing a sigh of relief, the whirlpool kunoichi brought a chakra-filled hand up to her shoulder first.

The warming energy repaired the broken cells more quickly than expected. Thankfully, sleeping had done a great deal to restore her chakra reserves.

The entire process took about an hour to complete. The paper cuts, although painful and prolific, had been shallow and fairly simple to heal. The bruising and her concussion had taken a little longer to vanish, but in the least it was over now.

_Konan could have made that much worse if she wanted to,_  Akira thought, turning off the shower. She walked out and grabbed a towel to begin drying her dripping body.  _What the hell was Deidara thinking when he kidnapped me? I’m not cut out for this place._

Then again, when did Deidara ever think about what he did?

Draping the towel around her exposed form, Akira exited the bathroom in search of a change of clothes from the pile Konan had given her.

With her former clothes shredded, Akira would need a new regular outfit to wear. She salvaged the patches  bearing the Hyuuga emblem off her blue top, and, using a sewing kit she found in Itachi’s nightstand (stranger things had certainly happened), she attached the patches to either arm of a new, more form-fitting long-sleeved black top. The pants she selected were also black and more form-fitting than what she’d worn before. Well, if she was going to be Akatsuki’s healer, she may as well dress like it now. Perhaps she could mend her old outfit later, but for the time being, she didn’t feel like doing that kind of needlework.

After replacing the sewing kit she found, Akira returning Itachi’s towel and then stretched her aching muscles for a brief minute. Even with her body healed, she hated staying in the same place for too long.

Akira brought her attention to the dark bed sheets she’d been lying on earlier. Thanks to her, they were now smudged with dirt and traces of blood. Not exactly the most welcoming sight for Itachi once he and Kisame returned.

Striding over to the door, Akira tentatively placed her hand over the knob. Much to her surprise, it didn’t shock her.

_Deidara must have forgotten to reactivate the seal when he left._  Akira grinned to herself, forming a hand sign. At least something good happened today. She scanned for nearby chakra presences, and, finding none, Akira quietly twisted the knob and slipped outside.

Back against the wall, Akira scanned the hallway with her eyes before stealing into the adjacent room. She closed the door behind her as softly as possible.

Akira paused to examine the new room. As suspected, this place was a supply room. Who who’ve guessed she’d be sneaking in here for Itachi’s sake of all things?

It didn’t take her long to discover the closet containing the sheets. Akira also noticed a small pile of dirty clothes sitting in front of a washing machine and dryer.

_I guess even S ranked criminals need to do their laundry._

Shrugging, Akira doubled back to Itachi’s room. She returned to the supply room with the former linens as well as her mutilated clothes from earlier.

She did a load of wash and then began browsing the room for anything else she may need in the future. She discovered a few toiletries that would come in handy, some more spare towels for the bathroom and two soap bottles.

Treasures in hand, Akira left the supply room and was just about to re-enter Itachi’s room for a final time.

“Akira-san?”

Miraculously, Akira didn’t drop anything as she whipped her head to see Tobi.

“T-Tobi?” she stuttered. Well, at least it was him. Better to be caught by this idiot than by a member who could actually do some damage.

_Why didn’t I sense his presence?_

“Akira-san?” he repeated. “What are you doing?”

She laughed nervously. “I… just... uh, well, needed a few things.”

“Aren’t you not allowed to leave your room without someone else with you?” Tobi’s eye seemed to narrow. “Sounds awfully suspicious.”

“No, honestly.” She held up one of the shampoo bottles. “I’m not stupid, Tobi. I’m more than aware I have no chance of escaping here.”

Gripping the door knob with her other hand, Akira tried not to drop anything as she re-entered Itachi’s room.

“I guess that’s true,” Tobi admitted, standing at the entrance while she put away her things. “But I don’t think Deidara-senpai would make an exception. Or Konan.”

Akira shivered at the mention of the paper kunoichi’s name. She could almost feel the burning sensation from that woman’s jutsu all over again.

“I promise I won’t do anything, okay? Just keep this between us.“ Hopefully he would fall for that.

Tobi nodded vigorously, allowing Akira to breathe a sigh of relief.

“Just be careful, Akira-san.”

“I will,” she assured and clicked the door shut as Tobi’s brightly colored mask disappeared from sight.

_That was close,_ Akira thought, falling back onto the now spotless bed.  _Tobi’s right, though. I do need to be more careful. I should be thankful I didn’t meet Deidara or Konan back there._

Akira allowed her eyes to close.

_Or worse yet, Itachi…_

_-_

_Idiot!_ Obito ranted to himself as he reactivated the seal on Itachi’s door. Pein had installed this jutsu as a safety precaution in case of invasion. Each door needed one of the Akatsuki member’s chakra to open, and then said member would also have to do a quick seal to re-close it. But Deidara had forgotten do this after he lugged that kunochi’s battered body back to the room.

Thankfully that Hyuuga girl had only intended to visit the neighboring room for a few supplies. What would have happened had she been more ambitious? She could have easily wandered into some place she wasn’t supposed to be or hear something a prisoner shouldn’t. This could, of course, result in more than he was willing to go through.

_Why couldn’t we have just killed her?_

-

Itachi calmly twisted the crimson ring on his finger before preforming a series of hand signs. The large rock concealing Akatsuki’s entrance rumbled, and then rose with an echoing scrape.

The Uchiha and his partner strolled into the hideout, the bolder returning to its original positioning behind them.

“Pein should be pleased. Our mission went well,” Kisame remarked, although his partner didn’t even grunt in return. Something seemed off about him. Every time they came back from a mission, whether relatively simply or extremely difficult, the raven-haired man seemed drained.

Kisame stopped in the main room to relax for a bit. Meanwhile, Itachi continued into the left hallway, headed for his room. Kisame failed to notice the Uchiha’s left hand clutching his chest.

Not even bothering to glance around, Itachi threw open his door and made a beeline for the bathroom cabinet containing his medicine. He gulped down the glowing pills, not even bothering to use water.

Itachi’s body jolted as a paroxysm of coughs shook his weakened form. The unpleasant taste of iron rose along with bile in the Akatsuki’s throat, but thanks to the medicine, he managed to keep down anything he’d eaten earlier.

Panting, the Uchiha’s fingers continued to grip the material of his shirt as the pain slowly subsided. Even with the medicine, albeit much slower than before, he was getting worse. The only chakra he’d used that mission were his sharingan and a few basic jutsu. Kisame had to be growing suspicious by now.

After taking a few more minutes to compose himself, the Uchiha emerged from the bathroom to find a figure contently snoozing on his bed. Her breathing was deep and slow. Out of paranoia, Itachi confirmed her unconsciousness with his sharingan.

One more thing to worry about. Itachi sighed. Even if she did already know about his disease, he still had to ensure she wouldn’t tell anyone. Not only would they have to share a living space, stripping them both of their privacy and personal freedom, but he’d also have to worry about keeping her in the dark about a few things. In the least, back at her house, they’d had separate rooms.

With quiet footsteps, Itachi removed the top layer of his uniform and replaced it in the closet, all the while keeping his eyes locked on the girl.

There would be a multitude of hardships ahead for her. Not that he would ever admit it, but Itachi hoped she would survive. Even with their many difficult situations, they worked well together when necessary.

Itachi crept over to the sleeping Hyuuga. Just like the night he left, her face looked so peaceful, a privilege of slumber he had yet to experience. But just after he thought this, she hugged herself, shoulders quivering as if she were cold. The Akatsuki’s gaze descended to the comforter pooled at her feet. No wonder, she’d kicked off the covers.

Without thinking, Itachi gathered the mess of cloth and gently replaced it over Akira’s figure. By the time he realized what he was doing, her body relaxed and her shivering ceased. And with that, Itachi left the room.

-

Akira jolted awake at the sound of a faint  _click_. Scanning the room with hazy vision, her gaze rested on the half-open closet, which held a recently added Akatsuki uniform.

_Itachi’s back._ The comforter that had previously covered her shoulders now gathered at her waist. She felt much better after sleeping for a few more hours and this time without being knocked unconscious.

Akira yawned. Unsurprisingly, Itachi had managed to come in without waking her.

_I should at least do something useful today,_  Akira thought, throwing aside the covers and leaving the bed. Her body protested at the sudden temperature change.

Akira turned on the bathroom light, and, after wincing at the change, stole a glance in the bathroom mirror to be sure she didn’t look too disheveled (which she actually kind if did) before heading to the door. But as soon as she gripped the handle, a surge of chakra shot into her hand.

Akira yelped and pulled away. Someone had replaced the seal. Grumbling, she retraced her steps to the bed.

-

“Hey, Itachi, how’s Akira doing?” The Uchiha couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow as Deidara spoke to him. Even if it was about Akira, what about her could possibly possess the former Iwa nin to actually talk to him?

“Last I checked, she was sound asleep.”

Much to his growing surprise, Deidara sighed with relief. “Good. I was wondering if she’d actually be able to relax after what happened this afternoon.”

“And what might that be?” His crimson eyes glinted questioningly.

“Well, Konan kind of took her to the training grounds and beat the shit out of her.”

“Why?”

“Dunno. Probably Pein’s orders. Testing her abilities and all that, un.”

“I thought Kisame and I had already assessed such information.” Deidara scowled at the Uchiha’s robotic speaking.

“Pein probably wanted a second opinion. Someone that didn’t already know her from before.”

“She looked unharmed when I saw her last.”

Deidara scowled again. “She is a healing nin. You should know that better than anyone else, un.”

“My mistake.” True, but he also knew Konan.

“Just take care of her as best you can with… uh, being you, un.” Deidara looked extremely uncomfortable saying this. “I don’t want the kunoichi that I, mind you, went through a lot of trouble to bring here, dying! Got it, un?”

Itachi’s kept his eyes cold and passive. “I will do so to the best of my ability.”

“Good.” Glaring one last time, Deidara turned around, heading for the kitchen.

_Does he realize I wasn’t even here today?_ Itachi wondered, shaking his head. The only thing he’d ever seen Deidara this protective of was his art.

The rest of the day passed quickly enough, and, before Itachi knew it, he was off to his room for some privacy. Or at least as much as he was going to get.

Mentally sighing, the Uchiha released the seal to his room and opened the door before closing it behind him and reactivating the mechanism. Although troublesome at times, he had to respect Pein’s desire to always be prepared. Their stand-in leader’s obsession with planning nearly rivaled his.

“Itachi?” He turned to see Akira lounging on his bed, oddly enough, one of his books on, of all things, battle strategies in hand.

“You’ve got quite a few painkillers in there,” she remarked, tossing a pill bottle, and not the one she'd made for him, into his hands. He caught it and resisted the urge to feel angry.

“I see you’ve taken the liberty of finding your way around.”

She frowned at him, sensing the sarcasm in his tone. “For the record, I ran across it by accident in the bathroom cabinet. Besides, it’s not like I have much else to do in here.”

“Except read.” He detested people touching his things without permission, especially when they moved said object away from where he’d placed it. “Just don’t touch anything else, if you please.” He walked to the bathroom to replace the painkillers in their designated place.

“It’s a bit early for you to be sleeping,” Akira remarked. It was barely eight at night.

“I just came for some time away. Need I remind you I have recently returned from a mission?”

“Right, right.” She turned her attention back to the book she’d been reading. Itachi grabbed a different book and sat down next to her on the bed to do his own reading.

She shot him a dirtier look than before.

“Is there a problem?” Why even bother asking? The shorter list was what she didn’t have a problem with. “I’m not reading on the floor.”

“Can you even read with your eyesight?”

His eyes narrowed. “That is none of your concern.”

She lowered the book to look at him, lips pursed. He initially expected an insult of some sort, but, much to his surprise, she merely rolled her eyes and turned back to the book.

He raised an eyebrow before doing the same thing, minus the eye roll. Oddly submissive of her, considering. Or…

“Was Konan that hard on you today?" Even with his eyesight, Itachi saw her cheeks flush red.

“I take it you heard then,” she muttered.

“I am responsible for your well-being, even if I am absent.”

Akira frowned. “I thought that went to Deidara when you weren’t here.”

“Not according to him. However, you seem fine now.”

“Hey, paper cuts may be shallow, but that many at once hurts like hell!”

“I’ll take your word for it.” If only the girl truly knew who she was talking to. In this world, a mess of paper cuts were the least of her worries.

“Hfm.” She seemed most infuriated that he would not return her glare. Anger still boiling, she reopened the book for a third time.

The minutes ticked by in silence until Itachi’s eyes became heavy with sleep. Not wanting to fall asleep unnecessarily, Itachi set aside his reading and left the bed to flip the light switch.

“Already? But it’s still early!” Akira protested.

“Are battle strategies truly that interesting to you?” At this, she glanced awkwardly at the book in her hands, which was more than enough of an answer. “I thought not.”

With a soft  _click_ , the lights went out. Akira grudging set aside the manuscript and submerged the lower half of her body beneath the covers. Itachi silently did the same, thankful the darkness concealed him shaking his head at her childish behavior.

Itachi fell asleep within seconds of closing his eyes, unaware of Akira rolling onto her side to face him. In the dark, she could hear was his breathing. The sound lulled her into a dreamless sleep.

-

When Akira awoke the next morning, she knew it was earlier than usual. Not only had she gone to sleep at a ridiculously early time, but she could still feel her roommate breathing on her.

Wait, Itachi was breathing on her?

Akira’s eyes shot open to see Itachi’s face lying centimeter away from hers. She must have rolled closer in her sleep.

But, before she could react, an observation stopped her. Most people, when they slept, looked peaceful. But Itachi, putting it lightly, looked far from it. Save for his minor coma during their initial meet, she’d never actually turned her attention away from everything else to watch him sleep.

He looked restless and troubled, like he was having a nightmare. But what could Itachi possibly have to be afraid of?

She couldn’t bear to watch any longer. He no longer seemed mildly bothered—now he looked terrified. No one deserved to suffer like this.

Akira softly placed a hand on the side of his face. He would likely be upset with her, but like most times this sort of thing happened, she didn’t care.

“Itachi,” she murmured, trying to shake him. Nothing changed. If anything, it worsened. “Itachi!” she talked louder this time. He stirred and his unconscious pain stopped. A moment later, his dark eyes flicked open.

She’d never been given a stare this cold before, not even from him

“You were having a bad dream,” Akira explained, desperately trying to ignore the embarrassment she felt. ‘I figured it best if I woke you.”

His cold gaze turned indifferent. “That was unnecessary.”

“Are you okay?” she demanded, concern overpowering the common sense telling her to shut up.

“I will be once you kindly remove your hand.”

Akira realized her hand still cupped his cheek. Blushing, she withdrew her limb as if his skin were a hot burner.

“Sorry,” she muttered.

Itachi rolled so that his back faced her.

After Kami only knew how many minutes of awkward silence, Itachi sat up and got out of bed, headed for the bathroom. The next sound she heard was the shower being turned on.

Akira sighed.  _Maybe I should have just left him to suffer in his nightmare._

Deep down, Akira knew she’d done the right thing, even if he hadn’t appreciated the notion. Itachi’s dreams were his business, but why had he gotten so upset with her for waking him?

Akira flipped onto her back, staring at the ceiling. Waiting just a bit longer to get ready shouldn’t hurt.

_Who are you, Itachi?_  Akira wondered. What kind of man bore pain so deep that it haunted his dreams?  _What could have made you so cold?_

-

Itachi deeply breathed the steam into his damaged lungs as the hot water cascaded down his back, desperately wanting to forget the experience from a few minute ago. He’d been having one of his usual nightmares about death and killing. Each time his dreams were a little different and each time they left him just as disturbed.

_I need to stop dropping my guard around her._ As if he hadn’t already had enough incidents with this girl. He needed to be more careful. Akira certainly had a gift when it came to people, but duty required him to be an exception.  _Sasuke_  required him to be an exception.

She couldn’t find out about him—even with her accepting nature, she’d never look at him the same way again. And, whether Itachi wanted to admit it or not, he didn’t want that.


	19. Chapter 19

Breakfast that morning felt especially awkward. Akira still questioned Itachi's odd behavior. Wouldn't a normal person at least be the slightest bit thankful when someone woke them from nightmare? Given, Itachi was anything but normal, but still…

Akira hesitated to admit it, but she was concerned about him.

"Itachi," Kisame's voice broke the Hyuuga girl from her thoughts, "Pein said we're leaving for a mission soon."

"How long?"

“Half an hour, give or take."

"I should probably prepare then." Rising to his feet, the Uchiha gathered his dishes and dropped them off at the kitchen before heading off to his room.

"Takes care of that problem, un," Deidara grinned, but stopped when he noticed Akira's downcast expression and half-eaten breakfast.

"Something bothering you, un?" Deidara inquired, sounding curious but not concerned.

Akira hesitated, now aware that she'd spaced off. She really needed to stop thinking about this morning. "Uh, no, I was just, uh… thinking," she stammered.

"About Itachi."

She turned beet red. "No! I just…" Her blush worsened by the second. She winced at the inevitability. "Yes."

"Hm?" He gave her another curious look. "How exactly?"

"I just don't get him," she admitted. "That not exactly the easiest thing for me when I'm sharing a room with him."

"Tch." Kisame, who'd heard everything, looked away, although he completely understood where she came from. He'd been Itachi's partner for eight years, and a great deal of the man remained an enigma to him.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I don't think anybody quite understands him," Deidara said, getting up from the table and then turning to Tobi, who had remained surprisingly silent the entire time. "Anyway, Tobi, we're training now."

"But Senpai, aren't Hidan and Kakuzu already—"

"Forget them! If we have to share, we'll share, un."

The oddly paired team bickered their way through the statue room and all the way to the training grounds. Sighing, Akira finally followed his head and began cleaning up her half-eaten meal.

She returned to the main room, slumping onto one of the couches while Kisame observed her with watchful eyes. Wordlessly, he took a seat on the opposite couch facing hers.

"So…" Akira broke the silence, trying to avert any more awkwardness of the day. "You and Itachi have another mission?"

The shark shrugged. "It's more or less what we do here."

"Right." Stupid question on her part.

"So what happened with you and Itachi?"

She froze, taken aback at his bluntness. "Pardon?"

"He did something to bother you, right? I'm his partner. I think I have a right to know."

Akira shook her head. "He's just odd."

"Odd, eh?" Kisame half-smiled.

-

Kisame couldn't help but eye the kunoichi. She was oddly concerned with his partner, but given the tendency Itachi had to confuse most normal people like her, it was a wonder she hadn't gone insane by now. It had taken him forever just to get used to the Uchiha, let alone sleep in the same vicinity.

"Kisame?"

Then again, did she even know?

"Hey, kunoichi," Kisame began. "What do you know about Itachi?" His question clearly caught her off guard.

"Well…" she trailed off. “I know he used to be leaf ANBU.”

_She really does't know, does she?_

"You know about as much as the rest of us," Kisame stated, trying to make his tone as causal as possible. "I mean, other than the fact he's the guy who murdered his entire clan and all."

"What?" As expected, she looked surprised at his deliberate slip of the tongue.

"You didn't know?" She stared back at him with wide eyes.

"Itachi—?"

"Yes?" A cool voice interrupted her as she and Kisame turned to see Itachi himself standing at the entrance of the room, looking as cool and composed as ever.

"Nothing, Itachi," Kisame assured. The shark stood up, deadening himself to the fact he had single-handedly just defiled every good thing she had ever thought about his partner.

_If she knows what's good for her, she'll get over it quickly and stop trying to befriend him._  "Let's get started on this mission already."

"Hn." Itachi's eyes flickered to the crestfallen Hyuuga, but seemed to brush it off as nothing. Akira watched as he and Kisame left, down to when the last few strands of the Uchiha's ponytail disappeared from sight.

Her eyes were fearful, and her mind rejected the thought of what Kisame had just told her. It had been in passing, but still… she knew he killed people. He, like her, was a ninja, and not just that, an S ranked criminal. He had needed to do something horrendous to earn that title, but murder his clan?

Confounded, Akira shook her head, pulling her knees up to her chest and hugging them.

_No._ Itachi may have killed before, but he wasn't a cold-blooded murderer.

-

"Kisame," Itachi began after several minutes of travelling, "what did you say to Akira in my absence?"

The shark chuckled deeply. "What do you want to know for?"

"Just curious." He honestly was. That look she'd given him before he left… it was like she hadn't ever seen him before. As much as he hated to admit it, the idea bothered him.

"I just gave her some pointers about Konan. It seems she's still worried about the incident from a few days ago."

"Hn. Understandably so." Kisame wasn't telling him something, but at present Itachi decided not to pursue it further. He needed to concentrate on the mission at hand.

-

"Oi, kunochi, which idiot left you unattended?" Deidara demanded. "Thank goodness Pein and Konan left already! They'd have my head if this got out!"

"Oh, come on, Senpai, I'm sure they'd understand."

"Can't be helped, I suppose." The former Iwa nin sighed. "Do you want to come train with us before we lock you up in Konan's room again, un?"

Instinctively, Akira opened her mouth to say yes, but stopped. She couldn't train right now.

"No, actually. Maybe later." She forced her face into a fake smile.

Without another word, she headed off to the paper kunoichi's quarters, alone.

"Weird," Deidara remarked. He'd been attempting to be nice by offering to let her train with them and even when he'd asked Akira what was wrong at breakfast.

Another thought struck him.

"Dammit, she's unescorted again, un!"

-

"Itai!" Akira winced as a jolt of electric chakra surged through her hand. Dammit, she'd forgotten about the seal! "Fucking hell," she muttered. Great, now in addition to being emotionally unsettled, she was locked out of her—or rather  _the_ —room!

"Tch." Akira formed the seal for her byakugan. If she couldn't find the entrance, then dammit she was making one! "Byaku—"

"Need a hand?" A nerve-wracking voice spoke from behind her, her heart nearly stopping as she whipped around to see a familiar aloe Vera half-blended into the wall.

"Zetsu?" She hadn't sensed him at all. "Come again?"

"You're locked out," White Zetsu said simply.

"Why are you helping her again?" Black Zetsu inquired.

"Because it's the right thing to do!" White Zetsu retorted.

Silence.

"And she's pretty."

Akira palmed her forehead. By the looks of it, Black Zetsu wanted to do the same.

"If you would, please open the door," Akira requested politely. He finally did as she asked. "Thank you," she said, walking into the room.

"Don't mention it," White Zetsu called in an oddly dreamy tone.

"Don't ever do that again," Black Zetsu glowered.

Without another word, the Aloe Vera disappeared back into the stone.

"Okay then…" Akira officially felt unnerved. After shutting the door behind her, she collapsed onto the bed, ignoring the fact it reeked of Konan's scent. At least, at the moment, it was better than Itachi's.

Akira spent the next four hours simply contemplating her discovery. She came up with so many different ideas that it nearly brought tears to her eyes.

"Maybe Kisame lied" was her first idea. But why would he lie to her? He wouldn't call Itachi a mass murderer just to be funny.

Another idea was that maybe Itachi's clan hadn't been all that big. Maybe they'd been bad people and Itachi had done humanity a favor by extinguishing them. But she ignored that one, too. For one, they were big enough for Kisame to know about them, not to mention Itachi probably wouldn't have ended up in Akatsuki had that been his motivation.

Nothing made sense, no matter how long she thought about it. The only semi-logical conclusion she could come to was that Itachi had one hell of a good reason for doing what he did.

And there was only one way to find out that reason—asking Itachi herself.

Akira vividly shook her head.

No. Fucking. Way.

But what else could she do?

-

Deidara mindlessly stared at the clock on the main room wall while he munched on a stick of dango. "Akira's been cooped up in there for a while," he remarked, her face coming to mind for some reason. "It's amazing she hasn't complained yet, un."

"I'm surprised, too, senpai!" Tobi agreed. "I thought Akira would be back by now. That dark hallways gets old fast."

"Why the hell would she be in the hallway, un?" Deidara snapped.

"Well, she can't exactly get into any of our rooms unless someone lets her in, right?"

Deidara's expression fell. "Dammit!"

Panting, Deidara made it to the hallway in a matter of second, but, much to his surprise, he found it empty. "Tobi…" his gaze narrowed at his partner, who had just managed to catch up to him.

"But her chakra is coming from Konan's room!" Tobi protested.

Deidara paused, scanning the area. "I'll be damned. You're actually right about something."

"Phew…" the orange-masked Akatsuki sighed as Deidara undid the seal on Konan's door.

"Hey, you still alive in there?" he called, revealing the contemplative kunoichi curled up on Konan's bed. She looked startled at his sudden appearance, not that he blamed her.

"How'd you get in?" he asked bluntly.

"Zetsu was kind enough to lend me a hand," she replied with equal edge in her tone.

"Well, I was wondering if you felt like training yet."

She paused, considering. She finally said, "Sure," and got to her feet.

"About time you were back to normal," Deidara remarked. It barely took a full minute for them to reach the training grounds.

_Damn moody women, un,_ Deidara grimaced as they walked inside.

-

_This should at least help clear my head,_ Akira thought, glancing back and force between Deidara and Tobi.

"So, who's first?" Dedaira inquired with a debatably eccentric grin.

"I'll go," Akira volunteered, stepping forward. "Just one request, though. Taijutsu only."

"What? That's the same as me telling you not to use our byakugan!"

Akira smirked, settling into a fighting stance. "Fair enough."

"Hmf." Deidara frowned at her, but did the same. "Whenever you're ready, kunoichi."

She leapt at him full force. She didn't need to rely on her byakugan for a taijutsu match. A few rare times, Itachi had taken the time to pick up where they left off and teach her a few more things. She hadn't had many lessons with him, but she improved a phenomenal amount whenever she did.

Akira mentally smacked herself. There she went again thinking about Itachi!

It was odd to her that everywhere she went and practically everything she did somehow involved that stoic Uchiha. Even now, as she trained in an attempt to occupy herself. She'd spent the last few hours trying to figure out why Kisame had called him a mass murderer and here she was thinking about him again!

He haunted her, but not always in a bad way. He definitely confused her, but if he annoyed her so much, why did her relationship with him matter so much? Mass murderer or not, she still found herself deeply concerned for him. Then again, was it even concern?

They disagreed on practically everything, their personalities were polar opposite, and yet she still found herself drawn to him. Not the cold, unfeeling Akatsuki that everyone thought him to be, but the gentle, almost kind man underneath it all. She'd only seen glimpses, but it had definitely been there, like the time when Kaname had been injured, or when she'd been sick, or even the rare occasions she'd ended up crying on his shoulder. And not to dig up too much of the past, but even when he and his ANBU team had first brought her to the Whirlpool Village. He'd seen fit to save her life then. If he was really an unfeeling criminal, wouldn't he have just let her die all those years ago?

"Careful!" Deidara called as a shuriken grazed her arm. She barely heard him, let alone felt the pain. Those feelings she got—wasn't this getting a bit deeper than friendly concern?

A memory of the hanabi festival back in the Whirlpool Village flashed through her head. It had taken a while, but Itachi had actually ended up treating her quite kindly near the end.

Akira froze when she remembered what happened next: she had tried to kiss him, and if she recalled correctly, Itachi had leaned in a few inches himself. It was true; this wasn't just friendly concern, it was—

_Smack!_  The sound reverberated through the training grounds as Deidara's palm made contact with her chin, knocking the Hyuuga girl flat on her back.

This was love wasn't it? She was in love with Uchiha Itachi.

"Akira-san!" Tobi exclaimed.

Despite the landing, Akira felt no dizziness and her mind remained completely clear.

She could only wonder how Itachi felt about her. Akira could sense some of his emotions, but he was still the most guarded person she knew. He didn't want people to know he even had feelings, but  _why_? Love seemed like such an impossible emotion for him, but what had made him this way?

Something told her this involved the massacre of his clan.

"Akira!" She felt Tobi help her sit up.

She loved Itachi, but at the same time, she didn't understand him. But she wanted to. She wanted to be someone he could trust.

"Oi, get ahold of yourself!"

She wanted him to let her in, but there was only one way to do this: she had to ask him, and maybe through some crazy miracle, he would actually confide in her.

Akira fidgeted, trying to reawaken her body after the hit she'd received.

When Itachi returned, she would ask him, but until then, she needed to figure out what to say. After all, how could she expect an answer if she just randomly waltzed up to him saying, "Hey, Kisame mentioned something about you being a mass murderer. Would you mind elaborating a little?"

She needed to ask tactfully. But what if he refused to answer? Would their relationship recover?

That much was easy—it wouldn't. If she asked him this, she would be putting her entire connection with him on the line. The last thing she wanted was for him to hate her, but like she'd said before, there was no other way that she could see.

Steadying herself, Akira leaned on Tobi and allowed the man to pull her to her feet.

"Pay attention, dammit! If I'd had a kunai, you'd be dead, un!" Deidara yelled, and this time she heard him loud and clear.

"Sorry, I spaced off for a second," she apologized, somewhat touched.

"You should probably stop there for today then," Deidara said, and for once, she had no objections. The two escorted her back to Konan's room before Deidara let her in.

"Tell me if you get hungry, un," Deidara said.

"How?"

He paused. "I'll come back later," he rephrased, and then left the kunochi to her brooding.

She collapsed onto the bed again. He could skip all the remaining meals in the day for all she cared. She had a confession to plan, dammit!

-

The moment she felt Itachi's chakra return, her heart started racing. Even now, she was still second-guessing herself. Was she really in love with him?

At this, she actually found herself giggling. Who was she kidding? Of course she was!

As promised, Deidara returned in several hours to check on her. By now she was hungry and looking forward to visiting the kitchen.

She brushed by Itachi and Kisame in the main room. Her heartbeat increased at the mere sight of the stoic Uchiha. "What if's" flew through her head at crazy speeds. It made her feel dizzier than when Deidara had palmed her in the chin. But she had to do this—she could never live with herself if she didn't.

She cooked herself dinner and carefully bid her time, waiting in anticipation for a chance. One by one, each member slowly left. First, Kisame disappeared to go to his room and rest, then Tobi had followed when none of them had been watching and Akira hadn't seen Zetsu since this morning. Now, only Deidara was left and he seemed to be on his way.

"Ne, Itachi, could you bring Akira back to her room tonight for me, un?" Deidara requested stiffly. He never enjoyed talking to Itachi, let alone asking something of him. But tonight, he was too tired to care.

"Hn." Deidara took his answer as a yes, but Akira noted Itachi's tone was groggy because he had just dozed off for several minutes. But Deidara, being dense as he was, hadn't noticed.

"Thanks," Deidara muttered under his breath, and then disappeared into his respective hallway like everyone else had.

Now it was just her and Itachi. Could she have asked for a better chance?

-

Itachi clamped his teeth together to conceal a yawn. Had he really dozed off? No matter how early he went to bed, he always felt so tired.

In the meantime, Akira had somehow managed to slip into the spot beside him. It unnerved him that he hadn't noticed until now, but it reminded him of a question he'd been meaning to ask.

"Akira," her lavender eyes jolted to meet his the second he uttered her name, "did Kisame say something to you this morning?"

Her face twisted into a mixture between confusion and dread. Maybe he had been a tad blunt, but, as usual, he seemed right.

She averted her eyes and didn't answer him immediately. When she looked at him again, he recognized her expression as the same one she'd given him that morning.

"Um, Itachi…" she began, pinching her index fingers together, "Can I ask you something?"

He didn't move. She took that as a "Go on."

"Kisame, um, Kisame told me…"

_Yes? Yes?_

"Kisame told me about your clan!" she blurted.

Everything in the room seemed to freeze. Itachi had to remind himself to breathe. Somehow he managed to keep a blank face, but the last thing he felt at the moment was calm.

She knew—Kisame of all people had told her. The why didn't matter. Now she knew.

“And what of it?" Like every other time someone brought up the subject, he coldly turned away, acting like he didn't care. Even at the mention of the Uchiha massacre, so many unwanted memories came rushing back. He'd seen them hundreds of times in his head, playing them over and over again until he was sick to his stomach. But no matter how many times he saw it, their faces,  _Sasuke's_ face—it bothered him all the same. He was just better at hiding it now.

"You... didn't really, did you?" she trailed off, horror plainly reflected on her face.

"So what if I did?" Itachi felt like he'd just been sucker punched in the gut the moment the words left his mouth. It didn't matter if it hurt—he had to push her away. For Sasuke.

"Why?" she choked.

This wasn't the first time someone had asked him this. This part should be easy, as he'd played this role before so many times.

"To see what I was capable of."

"No!" she said automatically, surprising him. "That's not you."

"Oh? And what do you know about what is and isn't me?"

Her mouth froze in place. A pang of guilt assaulted the mutilated remains of his conscience.

"I thought not." To prove his point, Itachi stood up. She just sat there for what felt like an eternity for both of them. "Shall I take you back to Konan's room now?" he asked coldly, breaking the silence.

"Yes." Her face seemed ten times paler than it had this morning. She rose to her feet as well. Awkward silence built up between them the entire way. Akira looked near to tears as Itachi failed to make sense of his muddled emotions.

She hated him now, there was no question. She had every reason to. He'd kept something this big from her. He almost regretted not being the one to tell her.

Now that he thought about it, Kisame may have just done him a huge favor. He hadn't told her, so his partner did. He hadn't pushed her away completely, so Kisame had ensured that he would. In all honesty, shouldn't he be thanking Kisame for finally telling Akira he was the wrong man to trust?

He felt like a zombie when he released the seal on Konan's door and watched Akira walk inside. Making sure not to facially betray any emotion, Itachi shut—or maybe even slammed—the door behind him.

After reactivating the seal, he trudged back to his room, and only when he had finished mechanically performing his usual nighttime habits and was lying in bed trying to fall asleep, did the full weight of the day finally hit him.

She was gone. Any semi-good relationship built between them was destroyed, just like everything else he held dear, and by his hand. She probably saw him as a monster now, lower than the other scum that lived here, and she was right. What kind of a person did all the things he had and still had the right to call themselves human? What kind of a person showed their loved ones that they cared by taking their life or pushing them away? Sasuke, his clan—and now Akira.

And even when he drifted off to sleep, not once did he realize he had subconsciously grouped Akira in the same category as Sasuke.

-

Although she was alone, Akira tried to hold back the tears threatening to leave her eyes. After Itachi mentioned his reasons why, her mind had blanked.

All to see what he was capable of? Ha! She knew a fake reason when she heard one.

Or did she?

Akira buried her face in Konan's pillow. Maybe if she just ignored the problem between them, it would go away.

But it wouldn't. Once Pein and Konan came back, she and Itachi would be sharing a room again.

She hadn't meant to ask why, dammit! She'd wanted to tell him how she felt—she'd wanted to say that she loved him and didn't care about his past  _after_ she told him that she knew.

But of course, things hadn't been that simple. To put it bluntly, she'd fucked up. And now she and Itachi were on even worse terms than before.

Salty streams of water poured from her eyes—tears of anger, frustration and sadness. She didn't know what to do.

She still loved him.


	20. Chapter 20

Itachi found himself stumbling through the darkness. He fell to his knees as something wet slipped down his cheek.

Tears?

He quickly wiped the liquid away with the back of his hand. A familiar iron-like smell filled his nostrils. Blood?

He scanned his surroundings with crimson eyes. Ah yes, he knew this night only too well: the night of the Uchiha Massacre. He was even wearing his old ANBU uniform.

His hands reeked of death, and he could still feel his thirteen-year-old self crying—his most pathetic moment. Any minute now, Obito, under the alias of Uchiha Madara, would come to offer him a place in Akatsuki. His sharply trained senses picked up the sound of soft footsteps despite his distraught state.

_Right on time,_ he thought bitterly.

He looked up, expecting to see the masked face of his former sensei, but instead of a blood colored eyes burning through him, a soft pair of lavender orbs greeted him.

It was a beautiful woman dressed in a brightly-colored kimono. Her long blonde hair flower behind her in the gentle breeze and the moonlight outlined her figure, giving the woman an angelic glow.

But wait—he knew that kimono… That blue color, those patterns—it was the same one Akira had worn to the hanabi festival. Which would make…

He started back into the woman’s eyes. This was Akira.

She smiled kindly at him, almost like she couldn’t see the gallons of blood staining his skin and clothes.

“Itachi.” Her voice spoke his name. That kind, gentle voice she used whenever she was trying to calm someone. This was the same girl he knew, but in that kimono with her figure outlined in moonlight, she looked so much more mature.

She glided toward him, her sandaled feet barely touching the ground. The kind smile still graced her features as she knelt down to his level and pulled him into an embrace.

In her arms, the thirteen-year-old Itachi felt the sudden urge to start crying again. But for some reason, he didn’t feel ashamed—he actually felt safe.

He buried his face in her chest while his shoulders quivered between sobs. She just held him tight and soothingly rubbed his back, somehow avoiding the sword fastened there.

It felt like he was crying on his mother’s shoulder, or at least the mother he’d never had—Mikoto had not particularly been there for him like this—but, at the same time, it wasn’t just motherly. It was, for lack of a better word, weird.

Just when he felt like the tears had dried, a loud beeping rang out and Akira’s face began to fade. He panicked.

“Don’t go!” he cried, holding on more tightly than before. “Don’t leave me,” he finished weakly, his grip around her middle sagging. She just kept smiling at him, and somehow he found more tears to cry.

“I love you, Itachi,” she whispered, and then his word went black and the beeping sound blared for a second time. The next thing Itachi knew, he was twenty again, and his alarm clock was giving him the signal to get out of bed already.

Irritably, the Uchiha slammed the snooze button and then turned off the alarm all together. With a heavy sigh, he sat up, memories of the dream filling his head. Why was he dreaming about Akira now of all times?

_People say they don’t understand me, but at times, I don’t think even I understand me,_ Itachi lamented.

After breakfast, he and Akira somehow managed to muddle through a training session for the sake of routine. Itachi secretly dreaded Pein and Konan’s return when Akira would have to sleep in his room again.

-

_I can’t take this anymore,_ Akira thought as she panted from their morning spar. Itachi had been abnormally ruthless. He hadn’t injured her seriously or anything, but the way they acted around each other was definitely more hostile. This was beyond awkward.

It hadn’t even been a full day and she was already at her limit.

_I’m going to talk to him again tonight,_ Akira decided. _I’ve got to apologize._ Itachi had every right to be angry. _This is all my fault._

The rest of the day flew by and the entire time she and Itachi steered clear of each other. Kisame seemed to notice something was off, but he said nothing. He had started this, after all.

When night time came, Akira found herself feeling more apprehensive than she could have ever imagined. Deidara led her down the hallway to Konan’s room that evening like he did ever other night, but she felt like her heard had jumped out of her chest when the clay nin merely said, “Good night.”

She sweat dropped, trying to hide her apprehension. Deidara had no reason to suspect anything. _At least I hope not,_ Akira thought. _It’s not like I’m trying to sneak out of my room in the middle of the night or anything, promise!_

Thank Kami he had left before she said something stupid.

Now alone in the safety of her room, Akira had one more task to accomplish: that good-for-nothing seal that just _loved_ standing between her and her goals.

She formed the hand sign for her kekki genkai. _Byakugan!_

Here came the hard part…

As expected, the seal took a good chunk of time to release. She knew that it opened upon making contact with any Akatsuki’s chakra. Now her only question was how.

She managed to at least gain a better understanding of the structure after closely examining it with her byakugan, but she remained at a loss regarding how to open it.

Akira tried this and that, and numerous chakra shocks later, she did it. By using her precise chakra control, she injected a small amount of her chakra indirectly into the seal through the wall. When she touched the door knob again, much to her delight, nothing happened.

More quickly than ever before, Akira fled from Konan’s room before the seal went back to normal. Her breathing threatened to rage out of control as she stared down the long hallway.

Wasn’t this supposed to be the easy part?

One door, two doors—two doors down. She saw a sliver of light shining beneath the heavy block of wood—he was still awake!

She tiptoed down the hallway, cloaking her chakra presence. She couldn’t risk waking anybody. If _anyone_ found her sneaking into Itachi’s room in the middle of the night, it would not bode well for either of them.

She stood outside his door now, her fist raised to knock. She desperately tried to keep her chakra presence cloaked and still maintain her courage.

_Careful, Akira. You’ve rehearsed this at least a hundred times,_ she tried to reassure herself. Unsurprisingly, it didn’t help.

Summoning all her bravery, she was milliseconds away from making contact, but the light beneath Itachi’s door vanished. She froze.

No way… He had to pick now of all times? Couldn’t he have just waited another five seconds?

_He’s probably still awake. I still have a chance!_

Finally, she forced herself to knock. Her knuckles barely brushed the wooden surface, but a soft knocking sound was still produced.

She paused, considering whether or not she should knock again.

_Did he even hear that?_ Akira wondered. Maybe she should turn back. She knew how to release the seal now, so she could always come back another night. Maybe she could—

Itachi’s door opened.

Before Akira could make a run for it, she found herself face to face with a very sleep-deprived Uchiha. “Akira?” Needless to say, he neither looked nor sounded happy to see her. “What are you doing here? How did you—”

“That’s not important right now,” she cut off, trying to sound assertive as the butterflies in her stomach worsened. She couldn’t back down now—she’d been waiting far too long!

“What’s so important that you had to break out of your room and visit me at this hour?”

“I…” she trailed off, somehow convincing herself to look him in the eye. “I wanted to apologize.”

Itachi raised an eyebrow, but said nothing.

“I had no place asking what I did, and I’m sorry,” she blurted. “Can we just forget yesterday happened?”

His face bore its usual blank expression and she couldn’t read a thing from his dark eyes.

_Is he not used to receiving apologies?_ Akira wondered. For a few suffocating minutes, they stood there in silence.

“Akir—” Itachi began, but Akira silenced him, but not with words. Instead, she jumped forward and kissed him.

Unsurprisingly, he didn’t move. The only part of his body that visibly reacted were his eyes, which shot wide open and stayed that way from the moment their lips made contact. He didn’t try to shake her off, but, just in case, Akira locked her arms around his neck.

_What the hell did I just do?!_ Inwardly, Akira panicked. She hadn’t planned this!

But, then again, she got her point across. What better way to say “I love you” than by suddenly attacking your love interest in the middle of the night and kissing him?

Well, if this didn’t kill her, the embarrassment certainly would.

Her lips lingered on his for a few more seconds. By the end of it, he felt like more of an inanimate object with coincidental body heat rather than a person. His eyes remained wide when she released him.

“Itachi, I don’t care about what happened to your clan,” she said quietly. “And if you don’t want to tell me what happened, that’s fine, just…” she trailed off. “Just don’t lie to me.”

-

At this point, Itachi was unsure of whether this was actually reality or if he were dreaming again. His eyes slowly reverted back to their original size. He’d only kissed Akira once before, and that was in a last ditch effort to maintain his cover. But this time—

Itachi shook his head.

This time she actually meant it.

He’d never seen Akira look so sure of herself. Did he honestly not care that she’d just willingly kissed someone like him?

“Can you get back to Konan’s room by yourself?” he asked quietly.

She looked up at him with blushing cheeks. To be honest, had his emotions functioned normally, he would probably be turning redder than she was.

“It may take a while to get back inside,” she admitted.

“Then you should probably get in here before someone sees you,” Itachi said, walking away from the entrance but leaving the door open for her.

Akira did not need to be told twice.  She darted into his room without a moment’s hesitation and Itachi closed the door behind her.

Neither of them moved.

_I can’t act like she didn’t just kiss me,_ Itachi thought, ineffectively trying to formulate a solution.

_“I love you, Itachi…_ ” He’d never really thought about it up until now. He just assumed the dream had been his subconscious playing tricks on him. But maybe he was wrong.

He turned back to the Hyuuga.

Maybe it had just been Akira’s feelings trying to reach him. Itachi didn’t know why he said what he did next.

“How much did Kisame tell you?”

Akira was caught off guard again. “Um… just that you killed your clan. I figured out the rest on my own, based on what I knew about you.”

The room fell silent.

“I know you’re lying about why you did it.” All traces of shyness disappeared from her tone.

“But, even so, knowing I’m a murderer, you don’t regret meeting me?”

She shook her head, a determined look glinting in her lavender eyes. “I don’t believe you killed your clan in cold blood.”

“And why is that?” He was pushing her. He needed to know her reasoning, find out where he’d been careless and correct it. In a way, he needed to outsmart her before she figured out anything else important.

She smiled softly. “You have nightmares.”

“And so what if I do?”

“Only someone who regrets what they’ve done dreams about it. You’re always quiet, composed and I rarely see you smile. Clearly, you’re hiding something.” She paused for breath. “You don’t want anyone to know that you actually care and you’re not who you say.” She stopped again, looking him in the eye. “Am I wrong?”

He stood speechless. She didn’t know anything about his past, and he’d been so careful to hide who he was—that being said, how could she make an evaluation so incredibly accurate? He had to say something.

“Akira, I—” He stopped short, one hand rushing to cover his mouth while the other flew to his chest. A familiar pain shot through his upper body as his shoulders began quivering with throat-retching hacks.

A coughing spasm now of all times?

“Itachi!” Akira dashed over to him, her eyes wide with concern. In the chaos, Itachi dropped to his knees and could already taste blood surfacing. Akira fell with him, and, against his will, Itachi slumped against her shoulder, tightly clutching the material of his shirt as the pain overwhelmed him.

“Dammit,” Akira swore, frantically scanning the room. “Where’s your medicine?” Her efforts proved fruitless, and Itachi was in no condition to tell her. Time for plan B.

She slid her hands onto Itachi’s chest as gently as possible. One hand glowed with healing chakra while the other tried to loosen Itachi’s grip on his shirt and give her more room to work. Unfortunately, the only way she managed her last goal was through intertwining their fingers.

His grip was so monstrously strong that Akira felt as if her fingers were being crushed. She bore with it, concentrating every ounce of chakra she had into her left hand.

With the warm energy pouring into his lungs, Itachi’s coughing subsided long enough for him to motion to the drawer where one of his medicine bottles resided.

Through some miracle, Akira pried her hand away from his. She stumbled over to the nightstand and fumbled through the top drawer until she found the bottle, wrapped in a black cloth and glowing green with her chakra.

Itachi received the medicine and, before he knew it, Akira was back at his side, holding him while he recovered.

Somehow, their hand had become intertwined again.

“Are you all right?” Blood dripped down his chin as she asked him this. He looked at her again. Like every other time she’d seen him like this, she looked more worried about him than he could have ever thought humanly possible.

Relief washed over Akira when Itachi’s shoulders slumped forward, finally relaxed. She held him tight against her chest for the next minute, trying to further calm him. Only when his breathing returned to normal did she separate herself to help him to the bathroom.

Akira ran a hand towel under some water before beginning to wipe away some of the blood surrounding Itachi’s mouth. She’d done this once before—the first time she’d discovered him coughing all those months ago.

“There,” she said softly, trying to give him a reassuring smile. She tossed aside the towel, suddenly feeling an overwhelming urge to caress his face.

So she did.

Her digits brushed across the surprisingly smooth skin of left cheek, her thumb tracing the line beneath his eye. She didn’t act this time, but he did.

Before Itachi could logic himself out of it, his lips crashed onto hers in a less hesitant kiss than before. No one froze this time as Akira wrapped her arms around his neck again. Itachi pressed his lips onto hers a bit harder, trying to get a better taste of her mouth’s sweet flavor.

Akira felt her back being pressed against the bathroom wall, neither of them possessing the slightest desire to break lip contact. But within minutes, both their lungs screamed for air, bringing their passion-filled kiss to an end.

Itachi backed off as gently as possible, resting his forehead against Akira’s while the two of them panted to catch their breath. Itachi’s heart raced with what he recognized as an adrenaline rush.

“Itachi…” Akira breathed out his name, attempting to suppress the flush on her cheeks. She had no idea how unbelievable she looked.

Their faces inched together again, but then someone stopped. Itachi was hesitating again.

“Akira… I can’t…”

“Itachi, I don’t care—”

“But, I do,” he cut off. “You’re right. I can’t do this and still keep you in the dark.”

She smiled again, rubbing the place of his neck where her hand had wandered. “Then tell me.”

He actually returned the smile. “Not here.” He was not about to reveal the secrets of his past in a bathroom. She followed him back out to the bedroom where they took a seat on the bed. Akira slipped her hand through his, patiently waiting for him to begin.

“What Kisame told you is true, but there’s more to the story than that,” Itachi said. He was still hesitant. He’d been keeping this a secret for so long. He almost didn’t know where to begin.

“Go on.” She gave his hand an encouraging squeeze.

He settled on first explaining where he’d come from, the large, powerful clan known as the Uchiha. He went on about the shaky foundation of Konoha, which had planted the seeds of tension between the Senju and Uchiha. The constant, endless battles fought in the ninja wars; the underage soldiers—he left no survivors. He himself had been witness to the ugliest parts of war at the young age of four. Sad to say, he’d grown up with it.

It felt like hours before he finally reached the topic of the Uchiha slaughter. And Sasuke… even Itachi knew he was rambling when he started on that. There was no hiding the brotherly affection he held for the boy. The only person he’d spared, the only one he couldn’t bring himself to kill—that, Akira found, was Itachi’s little brother.

She heard all about the rebellion his family had been starting. The one he’d been chosen to stop—and he’d accepted. His parents, his girlfriend, his friends, and practically everyone he knew and loved—he’d killed them all for the sake of keeping the peace. He’d taken the fall, willingly become Konoha’s scapegoat and turned the one he loved most against him for his own safety. Mind boggling could only begin to describe it all.

Itachi gave her a moment, waiting for the information to sink in. The entire time, she’d just silently sat there, taking in every word he said. He had no idea what was going through her head.

Liquid sparkled in her eyes before tears began spilling out. She was crying—she was crying for him.

“I’m not worth it, Akira,” he said quietly. She’d already done this once before. He wasn’t sure if he could bear to see it again.

“Shut up, Itachi,” she retorted, sniffling. “You’re not the one at fault, Konoha is!”

“Does it really matter?”

“All you’ve done is blame yourself, but everything isn’t your fault. You weren’t the reason the Uchiha clan tried to take over Konoha. Both sides were power hungry and you were a child caught in the middle.”

He couldn’t argue with that. He’d never shared the knowledge with another person like this. There was no way he could ever win a dispute on the topic.

“Thank you, Akira.” He tried to ignore the fact she was still crying. Even after all that. So he closed his eyes and kissed her for a third time that night. He could still feel the liquid streaming down as salt clashed with the iron-like taste of blood in his mouth. Itachi ignored it and concentrated his full attention on kissing Akira.

Itachi finally leaned his full weight on her, unintentionally toppling both of them onto the bed. Despite the position, Akira barely even squirmed. By now, Itachi had moved his mouth onto her neck, lightly nipping the smooth flesh and most likely leaving a few bruises.

Itachi felt intoxicated as they continued. He didn’t want to stop, and judging by the way Akira had locked her legs around him, she felt the same. Their fingers somehow locked together again. And they kept going. Itachi no reserves left, nothing he would regret keeping from her (that he could think of) and Akira just kept clinging to him, cherishing the moment and knowing it wouldn’t last forever.

For the first time in his life, Itachi didn’t feel so alone.


	21. Chapter 21

Zetsu watched the scene play out before him, a dark blush creeping onto both sides of his face.

“That is it, we’re leaving!” White Zetsu exclaimed.

“Why? Things were just beginning to get interesting,” Black Zetsu retorted, somehow giving his lighter half a death glare.

“Tobi-sama will be interested in this new development.”

“He probably saw it coming, which explains why he instructed us to keep an extra close watch on these two,” Black Zetsu remarked.

“Still, I think she and Uchiha-san are good for each other.”

“How is this a good thing?”

“He trusts her. That’s a good thing, right?”

“Not if you’re Tobi-sama. But I guess we’ll find out then, won’t we?”

And, with that, Zetsu left to report to Akatsuki’s leader.

-

Uchiha Itachi awoke that morning most surprisingly without the help of his alarm. It was almost like a small voice in his head screamed for him to get up for some explicitly important reason he had yet to discover.

His half-blind eyes opened to reveal that reason. Akira’s sleeping face lay right in front of him, her body pressed against his chest in a loving embrace.

Itachi smiled at last night’s memory as he drew his arms from around her bare shoulders, bringing up one of his hands to caress her face.

_So beautiful,_ Itachi thought, his index finger trailing down the smooth curve of her chin. Why hadn’t he noticed before? Why hadn’t he, the supposed master of detail, seen Akira’s feelings?

Hell, why hadn’t he acted on his own?

He should be regretting this—he should be ashamed at sharing his past with the girl after all that happened, but he wasn’t. It felt good to trust.

The movement of his hand stopped when Akira’s lavender orbs opened to meet his black ones. She smiled back with a grin that actually looked human.

-

“Good morning, Itachi.” Akira stared back at him lovingly as she slipped her fingers through his nearest hand. She pulled him into a kiss before her mind could wander and before she could even consider regretting what she had done.

All that mattered right now was Itachi. Akatsuki, the Uchiha clan, Konohagakure—she didn’t even want to consider such trivial things.

Itachi broke the kiss first, trying to give them both a chance to fully wake up. Not complaining, Akira cuddled closer to Itachi’s chest, savoring the warmth.

“I love you,” she whispered.

He didn’t reply but she was slowly learning to translate those periods of silence. He was still getting used to being with someone that actually cared about him.

“Hey, what time is it?” She felt Itachi crane his neck to see the clock while she remained warmly nestled in his arms.

“Seven fifteen. Something wrong?”

Akira groaned as she grudgingly separated herself from Itachi’s embrace.

“Everything! I’m supposed to be in Konan’s room! I’ve got about three minutes until Deidara comes in to let me out.” She didn’t have to read Itachi’s expression to know he was painfully aware of the consequences of Deidara finding the room empty.

The frantic search for their clothes commenced.

Akira leapt off the bed, desperately trying to locate her underwear before a minute passed. As soon as her first mission was completed, all that was left to find was that—

“This is yours!” Akira seized Itachi’s over-shirt and threw it to him while she pulled on her pants and noticed her shirt lying on the opposite end of the room.

 By the time she was finally done (no shoes since she’d come barefoot), Itachi had been dressed for a minute more.

Thank Kami she’d come in her night clothes, otherwise, she would have taken quite some time to pry on the tight black outfit. She and Itachi inched to the door, scanning for chakra presences.

“Coast is clear,” Itachi whispered, to which she nodded.

They made run for it—or walk rather. She gripped his hand for dear life, praying the hallway would remain vacant. They reached the paper kunoichi’s room in a matter of seconds. Itachi shoved her inside as gently as possible just as Deidara’s chakra approached.

Itachi closed her door with a soft creak, making eye contact with the blue-eyed blonde just in the nick of time. Being a genjutsu master, he made Deidara see him a few yards farther than he actually was while he used a teleportation jutsu to get there.

The two men brushed by one another without so much as a greeting. Itachi mentally sighed once he was back in the safety of the main room. That had been unnervingly close.

-

“Dammit, heal faster!” Akira said as she poured healing chakra into her neck. She was currently sitting on the floor hurriedly trying to heal a bruise on her neck that she’d failed to notice that morning. Of course if she had only worn her regular outfit, she would have been fine, but she’d just had to go to bed in the comfortable, non-collared T-shirt!

The door opened seconds after the last traces of purple disappeared from sight.

“Akira?” Deidara looked down at her with a strange expression “What are you doing on the floor, un?”

“I, uh… tripped?” she finished lamely, looking away to hide her blush.

He looked at her dubiously.

“Sorry, I got up a little late. Would you mind waiting a few minutes until I get ready?” Akira added quickly with what she hoped was a convincing smile.

“Hm. You got up late, too? I passed Itachi in the hallway and usually he’s—”

The door slammed in his face.

“Weird, un.”

She’d already changed into her regular clothes by now, tied on her headband, and combed and re-braided her loose hair. Now, she was frantically brushing her teeth and still trying to conquer the raging blush on her cheeks.

_Calm down, Akira. It was just another night with Itachi._

But ambivalence took over

  _JUST?! I freaking slept with him!_

Spitting out a mixture of toothpaste and saliva, Akira rinsed her mouth and replaced the toothbrush before scurrying to the door.

“You can come in now,” she called meekly. The door creaked open.

“If you keep this up, I’m asking Tobi to get you,” Deidara frowned.

“Sorry, I just had a slow morning!” And a long night.

Breakfast was normal enough, considering. She managed to choke down some food and keep herself from staring at Itachi for too long. Of course, then she had training to complete.

-

Kisame found himself carefully observing the Hyuuga girl that morning. Something seemed different about her. Yesterday morning, she’d possessed a glaringly awkward edge, and today the edge was gone.

Kisame had a strong feeling this somehow involved his partner.

From breakfast until training, he kept watching them, trying to put his finger on it. Then it hit him when Itachi stopped his strike inches from Akira’s face. Normally, he’d just go through with it and send her flying, especially after what Kisame had recently caused.

The tension between them was gone—vanished into thin air. And after a discovery like the one Akira had made, forgive and forget was not plausible. The negative energy between them had been replaced with an odd understanding.

Kisame watched them for a bit longer, eagerly listening to Itachi’s words as he instructed Akira.

He detected a warm change Itachi’s tone. As for Akira, he didn’t need to read her that closely. She was like a walking billboard with the way she had her emotions on full display. That girl didn’t possess half of Itachi’s self-control.

So either one of two things had happened last night: they’d both said to hell with it and gone back to acting normally or two, Akira had somehow convinced Itachi to spill everything, thus making her more knowledgeable about the Uchiha than any other member in all of Akatsuki.

Both were unreasonable, but their interaction screamed the latter.

_Wait a second—didn’t Itachi come to breakfast later than usual?_ The color drained from the shark’s face. _No way…_

The funny way Akira walked combined with the self-satisfied aura Itachi had about him—all of it made sense now.

To be honest, Kisame didn’t know whether to feel proud or appalled. Itachi, that stoic, anti-social brat he’d been partnered with all those years ago—the same oddly celibate guy who he’d never seen so much as blink when a beautiful woman walked by—he was involved with their _healer_?

When it was his turn to spar Itachi, Kisame spent a good deal of the time considering whether or not to tell the new couple he knew about their relationship.

In the end, after barely managing to dodge one of Itachi’s attacks, he decided against it. If this turned out to be nothing more a fling, Itachi would certainly want to keep things quiet. For now, and only for that reason, he would keep his mouth shut.

-

The rest of the day continued on, and thankfully no one else detected anything out of the ordinary. Hidan and Kakuzu left for a mission shortly after breakfast, and much to Akira’s chagrin, Pein and Konan arrived back at the base that afternoon. Weary from her travels, Konan went straight to her room and likely intended to stay there for the rest of the day.

As usual, Zetsu was nowhere to be found, and Kisame, Tobi and Deidara played poker in the main room. But, not-so-usually, Itachi sat on one of the main room couches, Akira close by his side. Or at least as close as she could be without arousing suspicion.

“So what possessed you to come join us, un?” Deidara inquired to Itachi. “All I ever see you do is lock yourself in your room.”

“No particular reason.” Akira breathed a mental sigh of relief that the other Akatsuki were too far away to see their joined fingers. Kisame stifled a laugh with an awkward-sounding cough.

“Ha! I win again, bitches!” Deidara exclaimed. He grinned smugly at Tobi and Kisame. “Pay up, un.”

“But, Senpai, Tobi has no money!”

A long slur of profanities directed at the elder Uchiha filled the air, persuading the other members to go to their rooms early that night. Itachi and Akira’s hands quickly separated as they made a run for the hallway, Kisame following close behind.

Moments after Kisame slammed the door behind them, an explosion rang out, sending a shockwave through the base.

“Are there any nights where someone hasn’t tried to start a fight?” Akira muttered, steadying herself against the stone wall while the ground beneath them shook.

“Relax. Deidara’s just hot-headed,” Kisame said. “Although if he ends up destroying something valuable again, Pein’s gonna be pissed.”

Akira sweat-dropped. _Again?_

Now in the safety of Itachi’s room, Akira showered while Itachi sat on the bed reading.

“I wonder if Tobi’s all right,” Akira remarked as she dried her wet hair with a towel before replacing the fluffy linen in the bathroom and joining Itachi on the bed. Akira was in her night clothes again. She’d already doubled-checked for bruises in questionable places, and found none. Now at least, she could wear collarless shirts without fear.

Itachi set aside his book and turned to the Hyuuga girl leaning her head against his shoulder.

“Do you regret last night?” Itachi finally said. Someone had to bring it up, so it might as well be him. Akira shook her head, bringing up a hand to conceal a yawn. “Not in the slightest.”

He raised an eyebrow.

She sighed in defeat. “We cut this morning a little closer than I would have liked.”

Itachi half-smiled, remembering his encounter with Deidara in the hallway. “And?”

“I take it you want to keep this just between us?”

“It’s for your own safety.”

At this, Akira laughed. “True. You do have an awful lot of people after your life.”

“You’re not the slightest bit worried about yourself?”

“Not really. I’m more concerned about you, really.”

“Hm? How so?”

Her expression softened. “Is your brother really worth all this?”

“Yes.” His answer was immediate.

She brought her head off his shoulder to properly look him in the eye. “Then tell me more about him.”

“Maybe later.” Akira smiled softly at the eagerness Itachi’s tone. “For now, we need to figure out how to avoid any more close calls.”

“That’s easy. No more sneaking out for either of us. Do you have any idea how unnerving it is, walking around these hallways alone at night?”

“It stopped being scary after about my second week here.”

“Hey, I’ve been here almost that long!” she said with a playful pout. With that look, Itachi couldn’t resist any longer. He cupped her face and kissed her, lightly biting down on her bottom lip. She kissed him back instantly and before he could protest, she pulled him onto of her.

The sheer force of his weight knocked the wind out of her, allowing Itachi’s tongue access to the rest of her mouth. Akira didn’t mind him being on top, but she did, however, mind not being able to fight back.

Despite not having much experience, the Uchiha and Hyuuga commenced in a heated battle for dominance. They both agreed to no more sneaking around, but all bets were off when they were together like this.

Itachi broke the kiss to move his mouth to her neck. She felt him bite down again, likely leaving a bruise nearly identical to the one she discovered this morning.

_Dammit. Forgot to ask him not to do that,_ Akira thought through hitched breathing. Her fingers wandered down to the hem of Itachi’s shirt. She discarded the first piece of clothing before pulling the Uchiha into another kiss.

Then again, what the hell.

-

_Zuzuzuzuzu_

Uchiha Obito turned his head as he recognized Zetsu’s chakra. He stood outside the base, enjoying the darkness and the view of the forest stretching beyond the lake near their cave.

“Your report?”

“Hidan, the usual. Two virgins and an old enemy murdered yesterday. Kakuzu is still keeping us in business with late night inventories. Kisame is normal, and Deidara—”

“What was so important that you came without my summoning?”

Both of Zetsu paused. Here went nothing.

“Akira knows about the Uchiha clan. Itachi told her last night.”

“And what brought this on?”

“They had sex afterwards,” Black Zetsu said bluntly.

“Ah. So they have become intimate after all.” This could prove difficult.

“Shall we dispose of her?” Black Zetsu inquired.

It took a few seconds before Tobi replied.

“No.” Knowing Akira, she would not risk Itachi’s confidence, especially if she was sleeping with him now. “We will wait. Her loyalty to Itachi may still work to our advantage.”

In the least, it assured her silence.


	22. Chapter 22

Uchiha Itachi slipped through the night, his crimson eyes the only color piercing the darkness. He tried to ignore the apprehension as he neared his destination. To him, this was wrong.

Akira should never be involved in Akatsuki's missions.

(Earlier that day)

"You wanted to see me," Pein inquired as he and Konan neared their usual meeting place at the stone arch several miles from the base. Madara's sharingan flashed back at them beneath his hood, only visible up close.

"Yes." Tobi paced around the two. "I understand you're sending Itachi and Kisame on a mission later today. Not quite as important as capturing a biju, mind you, but still of some importance to this organization."

"They are to assassinate a renegade financier before he can divulge information on Akatsuki to our enemies, yes," Pein said, stare unchanging. Konan remained silent.

"Akatsuki cannot be affiliated in this mess. If another financer finds out we assassinated this one, regardless of the reason, we will lose significant financial backing. Normally, this would not be an issue, but we are far too close to our goals to allow this to happen."

"We are aware. Is there anything else you would like us to do?"

"Use our resources. Send Akira. If she gets squeamish, one of them can certainly finish the job for her, but let her do the dirty work. She can be used for more than just healing."

"And you trust her?"

"I never said that. But no, I do not believe she will let us down."

-

"Akira!" The kunoichi jumped as a familiar deadpan called her name: Konan.

The next thing she knew, the flower kunoichi's face came into view as the door opened. Akira could only return her gaze, as she had been training in the flower kunoichi's room with what little she had as currently donned nothing more than a sports bra and a pair of shorts.

"Get dressed. Pein wishes to see you."

Five minutes later, Akira wore her black ninja outfit, her headband tied and sandals on. It unnerved her that the paper kunoichi watched her the entire time, but by now Akira was used to not having personal space.

By now, she'd been here six months.

"You wanted to see me?" Akira forced her voice to sound confident the leader's pierced face looked up at her. He stood by himself in the meeting room. Akira tried not to think about how long he'd been there. It took a moment before she realized Kisame and Itachi were there as well.

"We are all here at last," Pein said, and waited a moment before continuing. Itachi looked extremely uncomfortable to see her.

_I hope this doesn't mean he found out._ But, if that were the case, why was Kisame here, as well?

"Itachi, Kisame, you have already been briefed on your portion of the mission," Pein began, and then turned back to her. "Akira, tonight you will play a part in completing their assignment."

_Me_? Akira fought to keep a straight face. "What would you like me to do?"

"One of our financiers, by the name of Fujikama Ihan, has a deal to compromise Akatsuki in exchange for a large sum of money and promised protection," Pein continued. "We do not wish for this to happen. Therefore, the man must be assassinated."

"Where do I come in?" Itachi and Kisame were far more capable regarding that aspect, and she knew it.

"Akatsuki must not be associated in this manner. Furthermore, you, Akira, have yet to be associated with this organization. It will look far less suspicious to any onlooker to see Fujikama, a renowned womanizer, leaving his own party with you, rather than Itachi or Kisame."

_So I'm their scapegoat, then?_ That made sense. But why now of all times? She stared straight back in the man's ringed gaze. "Just tell me what to do."

Pein gave each of them a few more details, and before Akira knew it, Konan was leading her back to "their" room to get changed. Akira stood there, unsure of what to do as she noticed Konan digging through the closet in which Akira had made a point not to touch anything. Konan brought out a long, tight-looking black dress.

"Put this on." Akira tried to ignore the apprehension she felt as the paper kunoichi handed her the garment. This was really happening, wasn't it?

By the time Akira squeezed into the thing, Konan also presented her with a pair of black heels, a gold belt and two matching bracelets. Next, Konan brought out an impressive array of makeup.

"Sit down," Konan motioned to the bed, "and hold still."

By the time it was over, Akira could not believe that it was her staring back in the mirror.

Her long blonde hair had been straightened and now lay in silky tresses down side of her back and a bit in the front. Her lavender eyes shone with a sultry look from the smoky-eye makeup, which although not identical to Konan's, definitely mirrored the woman's style. Her lips were a pale pink pout, and the dress...

The tight black garment clung to her figure like nothing else she'd worn in her life. The black halter, which revealed nothing more than a few inches of cleavage, exposed nearly all of the Hyuuga girl's back, leaving her arms and shoulders free. Konan added the shiny designer V belt to enunciate the Hyuuga girl's waist while the rest of the dress flowed to the floor.

A slit on the right side snaked to the top of her leg, making Akira feel a bit uncomfortable, although she had to admit it completed the look and allowed her to move more freely.

When she walked out into the hallway, Hidan and Kakuzu happened to be passing by. Their reactions were priceless.

"Hot damn!" Hidan remarked. Even Kakuzu humored her a second glance.

"Keep walking," Konan said flatly, but even as they headed back to Itachi and Kisame waiting in the main room, Akira couldn't help but smile to herself.

Deidara and Tobi were out on a mission of their own, so she unfortunately couldn't see their reactions, but there was one man she couldn't wait to see.

"You guys ready?" The shark and the weasel turned to face her. Ignoring Kisame, Akira kept her eyes on Itachi.

He didn't gawk—Itachi's wasn't the gawking type—but even Kisame could tell the Uchiha was impressed. By the time she looked at Kisame, he was eying her up and down, but left it at that.

"Definitely." Kisame smirked. "Took you long enough."

-

Lights and thousands of chakra presences flickered to life on Itachi's radar as he neared the party. Kisame hung about the area, serving as back up, and Akira had gone in ahead of them.

Smoothing his hair and straightening his bowtie, Itachi walked forward like the countless civilians arriving with him.

The mansion was grandiose, to say in the least. From miles away, Itachi had been able to see the lights and the mass of chakra presences had only made the party all the more obvious. It looked like a castle. It didn't have the high towers or anything medieval-looking, but the rectangular stone walls and personalized iron gates gave the place a considerably regal feel.

Two guards stood at the entrance of the gate, checking invitations. Itachi activated his sharingan as they checked the guest list for his name. They allowed him in without a problem.

Pein had allowed Akira in with the alias of Asiko Aya, a guest previously unable to come, but Akatsuki had made sure to change this.

The grandeur only increased as Itachi entered the palace of Fujikama's home full of statues and artistic weaponry. The man knew how to cheat people, and that ended here.

The long, lavishly decorated hallway led to a ballroom buzzing full of musicians, servers and guests of all shapes, sizes and colors. A string quartet played in the background and toward the middle of the room some guests waltzed while others lingered about, sampling delicacies and drinking punch while they talked.

He arrived just in time. A familiar blonde stood by one of the refreshment tables, a glass of punch in hand. He joined her. The hard part began after she confirmed his presence here.

Without meeting her gaze, Itachi poured himself a glass of the decadent punch. Fujikama, a brown-haired man with yellow eyes, thin eyebrows and a pointed goatee who was clearly accustomed to wearing suits, stood several yards behind them, socializing with a business associate.

Akira stared straight ahead, gripping her glass. Itachi wanted to grab her hand and assure her all would be well, but he couldn't. The most he could do was steal a quick gaze into her smoky lavender eyes, give her a look that only Akira knew was encouraging, and send her on her way.

She didn't look it, but Itachi knew she was nervous.

Exhaling, Akira set her glass on the table and initiated her best seductress smile. She sashayed toward Fujikama, grabbing a glass of champagne instead from a passing waiter as she did so. Their eyes met, and Akira seductively raised an eyebrow as she took a sip from her glass and slowly turned away.

She heard him politely end things with the associate, of course a male, he'd been talking to, before he headed in her direction. Akira made a point to outwardly not notice him.

Perfect.

Her sauntered toward her, and Akira allowed the man a small glance as he extended his hand.

"Fujikama Ihan," he introduced, smiling his business-man smile. "And you are?"

"Aya," she replied, shaking his slender hand with her beautifully manicured one. This man was clearly not a ninja. "And to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"That, my dear, would be my question."

-

As Ihan made advances on Akira, it was everything Itachi could do not to whip out a kunai and slit the man's throat. He settled for taking out his frustration out on the punch glass in his hand.

Minutes passed, and their small talk escalated. The businessman's arm draped around Akira's shoulders, and Itachi could tell Fujikama was suggesting something away from the party, where Akira had already been instructed to suggest the man's office, where the files resided, and not take no for an answer.

It felt like an eternity before the duo finally walked off. Half a dozen men in uniform black suits followed them shortly afterwards—Fujikama's body guards. He was certainly expecting trouble.

A woman that had been standing beside him near the refreshment table gave him an odd look as he set down the now-broken punch glass. Ignoring her, Itachi wiped his hands on the table cloth and casually followed in that same direction, his sharingan flashing.

Now to take care of the guards…

-

"And now what business did you say you were involved in, Miss Aya?" Fujikama inquired, slurring his words slightly as he consumed his third glass of champagne. The arm previously hung around the girl's shoulders slid to her waist.

"Cosmetics," she replied, forcing a smile. The most she could do right now was pretend he was Itachi.

His fingers ran through her long hair, making no secret about how he loved the texture. Akira retained her smile until at last they were in the dark hallway outside one of the many doors leading beyond the ballroom.

"So, Ihan," she began, leaning her head against his arm, "what's your secret? The house, the festivities, the people, the guards… how do you do it?"

He smirked back at her, now on his fourth glass of champagne. "Perseverance, my dear. Simple perseverance combined with dumb luck."

They continued down the hallway filled with multiple closed doors bearing brass nameplates, reminding her a bit of Akatsuki's base. After a few rows of doors, they finally stopped the one bearing Fujikama's name.

"Here we are," he said, opening the door with a gentlemanly arm extended for her to enter. "Privacy, as promised."

The room was clean, probably by a maid, with a large window serving as one of the walls and currently concealed with velvety curtains. A potted plant lay in the corner and expensive paintings lined the office, similar to the hallway, and a large desk took up most of the space aside from several bookshelves and cabinets, all professionally decorated.

Akira strutted in and, with a single movement of her arm, cleared the surface of Ihan's desk, keeping her expression unconcerned as the objects crashed to the floor. She sat on its surface and opened her legs, inviting him over.

The door clicked shut as Fujikama locked it. It wasn't until he came close enough for her to wrap her legs around him, and he kissed her that Fujikama felt the cold steel of Akira's kunai pressed against his throat.

"Now, Ihan," Akira began, disgustedly wiping her mouth with her free hand. "Where are the files on Akatsuki?" Fujikama looked confused "No games," she emphasized, pressing the kunai a bit harder. "Where are the files? Scream, and I slit your throat."

"My guards—"

"My associate has already taken care of them," Akira interrupted, smirking. "It's just you and me, _as promised._ "

Ihan sighed, finally releasing his arms from around her figure as he stepped back, hands extended out where she could see them.

"It's always the pretty ones, isn't it?" he lamented, and Akira followed him to a painting of Mount Fuji beside the man's desk that he took off the wall to reveal a safe.

"Be quick about it," Akira snapped as he began the combination.

"Patience, my dear. What was this we were just discussing about perseverance?" Ihan seemed surprisingly calm as the door to his safe opened to reveal a mess of treasures and files. He sorted through them for minute before bringing out the one labeled "Akatsuki."

"I believe this is what you intended?" Akira snatched the file, and before he could close the door, she snapped, "Keep it open."

She heard a click. "Whatever you say," Fujikama began, his arms out of her view, and just when she realized what the sound was, he threw an object at her face.

Akira jumped back to avoid it, throwing her kunai, but pinning her target to the wall as the object exploded midair in a cloud of smoke, filling the room.

"GUARDS!" Fujikama yelled, fruitlessly trying to release his arm from the wall just as Akira drew another kunai. She heard two people break in through the window—two people with significantly strong and previously cloaked chakra. With the room still smoky, Akira activated her byakugan in time to see an arm flying toward her face. It collided, but not with her.

The wall imploded inches from her head as a familiar Uchiha's hands clutched her waist.

The smoke cleared, and the two new faces game into view, dressed nothing like the previous guards, and both of them already running to attack again. One was a well-muscled bald man in a sleeveless tight black outfit, the other a svelte woman with long lilac hair wearing a short coal black and red dress and matching thigh high boots. Both parties wore goggles, protecting their eyes from Itachi's sharingan, and bore scratched out Iwagakure headbands on their foreheads.

"Of course he would have back-up," Akira muttered in discontent as she parried the woman's first attack with a kunai. She was a swordsman and, judging by the symbols on her blade, not just a weapons master.

"You're new to Akatsuki," the woman remarked, her scarlet lips twisting into a sadistic smile.

Akira returned the look as she threw a fistful of kunai and shurkien, which of course the woman dodged. "Not a member, just an accomplice," she corrected. The woman's chakra was strong, but not as strong as the man fighting Itachi.

"Don't let her blade cut you," Itachi warned as they both regrouped from the attacks.

"We're the Boulder Siblings, Amaya and Akio" the woman explained, menacingly raising her katana. "I see you've heard of us, Uchiha Itachi. Although I didn't know Akatsuki stooped to hiring whores to do their dirty work."

Akira bristled at the remark, but knew better than to let it get to her. Itachi stared back at her blankly. "Worthless mercenaries with no true goal, willing to sell yourselves to the highest bidder. You're no better."

"And you think Akatsuki is honorable?!" she screamed as she attacked him instead. In turn, her brother went for Akira. The man grunted he clapped his hands together to form a set of hand signs.

"Stone fist jutsu!" His arms turned entirely to stone.

_That explains how he shattered the wall so easily,_ Akira thought, analyzing his chakra points. Unsurprisingly, a great deal of chakra concentrated around his upper body. All she needed to do was get close, preferably without getting hit.

Itachi jumped through the shattered window to fight outside, Amaya following him. Fujikama remained stuck in place from the kunai in his arm while Akira fought Akio. Akio's strikes obliterated anything he touched.

At this point, blocking wasn't an option. The only strikes Akio seemed comfortable with throwing were overhead and side to side and almost always in sets of two. Several dodges and one rotation later, Akira rushed in for her jyuuken as Akio repositioned for his next attack. Her pokes landed, and, despite their difference in strength, the pain of the pressure points drove the man back.

"Sixteen, thirty-two, sixty-four points!" Akira yelled, and this time she'd specifically chosen the nastiest paralysis combination possible.

Her byakugan confirmed his blocked chakra, and, just as Akira was about to leave to assist Itachi, said Uchiha came through the window, obliterating the desk as Amaya came back into view.

"Itachi!" Akira rushed to his side. The left arm of his suit had been slashed by the woman's sword.

Behind the woman was a gigantic earth creature whose head easily took up the wall's entire span. Bits of grass and mostly dirt composed its turgid form, and the symbol from the woman's katana glowed blue on its forehead with chakra.

"It's her golem," Itachi explain quickly, covering the wound on his arm with his hand. "All she requires is the blood of her victim combined with her own, and the golem will not disintegrate until one of them dies."

"That's why you didn't want me getting cut," Akira realized as the creature completely removed the rest of the wall where the window had once resided. She turned back to Itachi. "Make sure Ihan doesn't get away!" Both she and Itachi were back on their feet by now. "I have an idea. And don't let the golem kill you."

"Akira—"

"No arguments. You're not the only one that can be bossy!" Wielding a kunai in either hand, Akira rushed at Amaya, soon taking them back outside, where Itachi followed to better avoid the golem.

Ihan and Akio remained uselessly in the destroyed office.

"Ha! You think you can beat me, whore?" Amaya taunted as Akira flung a mass of shuriken at her. The Hyuuga girl performed a few hand signs.

Amaya's sword slashed her, but Akira's figure only melted into water.

"A mizubunshin?" Amaya whipped around to block an attack from behind. "Clever, whore, but not fast enough."

"Would you stop calling me that?" Akira yelled as she flung another set of shuriken from the folds of her dress to distract the mercenary. She then performed the hand signs for her shock wave.  _Seriously, I've only been with one guy._

The wave of water rose from beneath the earth and headed straight for Amaya. Akira noticed Itachi and several of his clones still dodging the golem's advances out of the corner of her eye. He could use his black flames or even Susann'o, but if this worked, he wouldn't have to take such a toll on his body.

Just as the golem walked by, several Itachi clones, serving as its distraction, Akira released the shockwave, soaking the creature. Amaya laughed as she jumped onto the shoulder of her golem. "What a useless jutsu! What are you going to do, give us a bath?"

Akira smirked as she performed her next few hand signs. "Not quite."

The water started to freeze. Amaya did not notice until it was too late that her feet were frozen along with the rest of the creature. As the surprise set in, Itachi aimed a kunai, which hit its mark perfectly.

Amaya was knocked off her creature as her goggles shattered, although her eyes remained intact just long enough for Itachi to make contact as she fell to the ground.

_Tsukuyomi!_ The Uchiha's irises transformed into the feared pinwheel. Amaya was finished. The golem disintegrated back into earth as a fear-induced heart-attack claimed the mercenary's life.

"About time," Akira sighed, picking up the katana from Amaya's corpse. "Are you alright?"

Itachi kept a straight face, trying not to show how much the technique exhausted him. "Let's worry about  _Ihan_  first." With the jealousy in his voice, Akira couldn't help but laugh.

"Trust me, Itachi, he's got nothing on you," Akira assured, to which the Uchiha shot her a glare.

When they returned to the decimated office, Ihan still sat where they had left him, kunai pinning his arm to the wall and a pool of blood forming around the area. But something was missing.

"Where's Akio?" Akira realized, and just as she said this, a powerful chakra presence reappeared on her radar.

"Akira!" the next thing she heard was Itachi calling her name, before an object rammed into her, slamming the Hyuuga girl into the wall beside Fujikama. Another  _crash_ sounded.

When the dust cleared, Akira looked to see Itachi pinned to the ground under Akio's stone fist, blood running from the Uchiha's mouth.

_Itachi…_  Akira's eyes widened. He'd just pushed her out of the way. She could only stare in shock as Akio made his way over to her. Itachi lay motionless on the floor.

"You must be something important to Akatsuki if Uchiha Itachi is willing to risk his life for you," Akio chuckled. "Just who are you?"

He picked her off the ground by her throat. Akira's hands struggled to release herself before he slammed her to the ground again, this time beside his sister's sword that Akira had dropped earlier.

"You Hyuugas should know it takes more than one paralysis jyuuken to immobilize me!" He slammed his foot into her back, causing the whole room to shake as more bits of debris fell from the broken walls.

Akira hacked, both from dust and lack of air as her fingers gripped the handle of the blade. Akio was too busy to notice her retrieving the weapon.

"This one is for my sister," he seethed, loading his arm back for the final punch.

Akira smiled weakly. "Go to hell."

His arm came down, but as he did so, Akira thrust out the blade with a final burst of strength. Akio screamed as the metal pierced through his stone hand, shattering it, and from there a vital point on his torso. All the power he intended to hit her was redirected into that strike. Akira rolled out of the way as he crumbled to the ground.

_I don't have much time,_ Akira thought as she saw looked over at Itachi. His eyes were beginning to flicker open.

"Whore!" the man screamed, snapping the blade in two with his only remaining hand as he rose to his feet. A few shards of the blade still protruded from Akio's body, but he was too angry to care. It would take time for him to bleed out, and Akira, her byakugan deactivated, was too tired to fight any longer.

"Amaterasu!"

A mass of black flames rose up and consumed the man's body, not stopping until only ashes remained. Akio screams resounded through the area until his vocal chords were destroyed as well.

"Thank goodness," Akira breathed, rolling onto her back as she coughed up a mixture of dust and blood. Seconds later, she gathered the strength to crawl through the debris over to her lover, who lay in a crumbled mess on the ground, similar to what she'd seen before, save for the streaks of blood beneath his eyes. "Thanks," she murmured, to which he grunted.

"Hn."

Although battered, both of their attentions turned to the final step in the mission as they stumbled to their feet: Fujikama Ihan.

"Now, now…" the man began, clearly about to beg for his life. "I'm rich! If I live, you two can have whatever you want! Really, anything!"

Akira brought out another kunai, her body screaming in protest at the movement.

"I want my mission finished."

And with that, she slit his throat. Blood spurted from the wound, staining her once beautiful black dress. The man gurgled and flailed briefly, but was then still, yellow eyes bulging.

"Is this the only file?" Itachi inquired, picking up the "Akatsuki" folder Akira had dropped the first time Akio attacked her.

"Possibly," Akira replied, turning back to look at him.

"May as well be thorough." Itachi threw the folder back into the pile from the now late Fujikama's safe and performed a series of hand signs.

"Katon! Goukakyuu no jutsu!"

The safe, painting, and entire wall exploded into a mess of flames.

The duo escaped the room. Even from outside, they could hear the fire alarm blare and guests screaming: the perfect cover-up for their getaway.

Finally, Akira mustered the chakra to begin healing Itachi's injuries. She could tell he was exhausted, and his back suffered from Akio's hit. They were silent, but the understanding maintained as Itachi's wounds mended.

Nearly finished with her healing, another presence appeared on Akira's radar, but this was not an enemy.

"Kisame?" Akira turned to the shark. "Where the hell were you? We could've used that back up hours ago!"

The shark chuckled, shouldering a blood-stained Samehada. "This Fujikama guy sure is paranoid. He had this place guarded to the teeth!"

Itachi shook his head as Akira stopped the healing energy to his back and shoulders.

"That should do it," she murmured and both of them rose to their feet. She turned to Kisame, "Any injuries?"

"Nothing serious," he replied, grinning. "I see you nabbed the Boulder Siblings and burned the place for good measure," Kisame remarked as the three of them passed Amaya's body.

"They were an unexpected addend in the equation," Itachi stated simply. Although it had been speculated that Fujikama would hire mercenaries for extra protection, exactly who had been unconfirmed. "The fire was necessary to ensure all the files were destroyed. Fujikama had a great deal of enemies, so it is doubtful Akatsuki will be considered for blame."

"Well, one way or another, the target is dead and everyone who saw us is also dead," Akira pointed out. "So mission accomplished?"

Kisame chuckled. "So, Itachi-san, how'd she do on her first mission? How many times did you have to say her sorry ass?"

Akira bristled. "Hey!"

"Not too often," Itachi assured. "She held her own well enough."

Kisame scoffed. "I like it better when you're cruel."

They made it back to the base without further issue, and, despite the cuts and bruises, Akira could not help but feel proud as Itachi reported to Pein.

"So, Ihan is dead and you are positive no one else saw you?"

"If they did, I killed them!"

Ignoring Kisame, Itachi said, "Yes."

"Good then. You may go."

Akira rose to follow them, but Pein stopped her. "Akira, you must stay." The Hyuuga girl froze, but obeyed. He waited until Kisame and Itachi were well out of sight before continuing.

"First," he continued, "congratulations on completing your first mission."

"Thanks?" She did not know how to take his words.

"Secondly, according to Itachi, you played a vital role in the success of this mission."

Akira replied with silence, not wanting to say anything unnecessary.

"Konan and I have decided to send you on more missions from now on. If you are also able to be of use during these and not a liability, we will continue to do so. Although should you betray our confidence or attempt an escape, we will not hesitate to kill you."

"Yes, sir." What else could she say?

"However, your missions will only be with Kisame, Itachi, Tobi or Deidara. Hidan and Kakuzu do not require healers, and Zetsu is a scout. Do not let us down, kunoichi."

-

Itachi waited in the main room for Akira to return. On the way back to the base, Kisame had returned the Uchiha's uniform, allowing his to conceal the tattered suit he wore from the mission. As usual, Hidan and Kakuzu were playing poker at the table, and Kisame had just joined them.

At last, Akira emerged from the meeting room. Even after the fight and all the blood and debris she'd been exposed to, she looked beautiful. Hidan wolf whistled.

"You're still wearing that?"

"Hey, I was on a mission, thank you very much!" she snapped back. Ever the hot-headed one.

"Mission? Pein actually sent you out on a mission?" Kakuzu raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah. I didn't believe it at first, either," Kisame said. "According to Itachi, she did quite well."

"Well, I'll be damned," Hidan remarked.

"Either way, I'm tired. Itachi, let's go." Akira turned to him, hand on her hip.

Muscles still aching slightly, Itachi rose to his feet. "Let's."

Back in his room, Itachi heard Akira sigh in relief as she peeled off Konan's dress, shaking off the dust. She then grabbed a hanger from the closet and draped the garment from one of the dresser knobs as a reminder to return it to Konan tomorrow.

After pulling on a baggy dark blue t-shirt to serve as pajamas, she plopped down on the bed next to him. "Remind me never to do that again!" she declared.

Itachi smiled softly as she rolled to place her head on his shoulder and grasp his arm. He had already removed the tattered suit and now only wore a loose pair of pants and his usual mesh shirt. And even with Akira's makeup removed and her hair in a mess, she was beautiful.

"What are you reading?" she inquired, glancing sideways at the cover.

"More books on strategy," he replied, but closed the book and set it aside. "However, I have far more important matters to attend, at present."

"Oh? Like what?" Her tone was playful as their hands intertwined. Itachi brought up his hand to cup her face as he kissed her.

"Thanks for saving me. Twice," Akira managed. Admittedly, one save had been more severe than the other. "I need to increase my skills."

"That's why they send out teams." Honestly, Itachi detested the idea of Akira accompanying them on missions, but if Pein insisted on placing her in harm's way, regardless of what Itachi thought, in the least, he would be there to protect her. But for now, he needed to sleep—

Akira wrapped her arms around his neck and straddled his hips, halting the Uchiha's thoughts. Their lips met again, this time in a deeper kiss as his hands moved to grip her backside.

Then again, sleep could wait.

-

Kisame groaned as he headed down the dark hallway. Even with the mission success, he'd come back only for Hidan to hit him in the face during one of the Jashinist's usual tantrums.

Heading to Itachi's room, Kisame possessed every intention of asking Akira to heal his face before he went to bed. This was not an injury he desired to wake up with in the morning.

And, noticing the Uchiha's light was still on, Kisame wrapped his knuckles on the door. He waited, but no one replied.

_Is that Uchiha as deaf as he is blind?_  Surely, Akira would hear him. After knocking one more time, Kisame decided to be rude and barge in.

Jaw dropping slightly, Kisame was shocked that neither of them stirred at his intrusion—knowing Akira, he would have more to worry about than a bruised face.

They were both here, but Akira was not in any condition to be performing medical ninjutsu and, judging by the fact he also hadn't moved, Itachi was in a rare stage of deep sleep. The discarded clothes on the floor told enough of their post-mission activities.

The Uchiha lay on his back, arms encircling an equally naked blonde curled on her side and cuddled close to his chest. The covers were a mess around them, and two of the pillows had been knocked to the floor during their impressively quiet midnight romp.

Kisame retraced his steps and closed the door, but he didn't bother turning out the light. They would know he had seen them if he did. Shaking his head, Kisame journeyed back to his own room.

He'd tried to break them apart, honestly he had. In his mind, any girl who discovered her love interest was a mass murderer would be scared away for good. But not Akira. She was either just as crazy as Itachi, incredibly gifted with people, or both. Not only that, but she also proved useful on missions.

_Maybe that Hyuuga girl isn't so bad, after all._


	23. Chapter 23

Akira meandered about the base, currently bored to death.

In the past week, Pein had increased her privileges. The day following her first mission, they presented her with a black and red uniform and, although she could not come and go from the base as she pleased, Pein had added her chakra to the seals on the members' doors, permitting her to move about within the base, given she did not intrude on meetings uninvited.

As she went on more and more missions, even Hidan and Kakuzu gained some respect for her. They never said this to her face, of course, but she could tell. Hidan called her considerably fewer names, and Kakuzu just left her alone. Deidara and Tobi had grown accustomed to having her along from time to time (Deidara was especially grateful as he commonly injured himself in explosions), although lately, Pein had kept her here, and she had no idea why.

Training by herself wasn't any fun. Itachi and Kisame had been gone for almost a week now, and Deidara and Tobi left for a mission yesterday. Now she was the only one here.

Worse yet, it was May second, her birthday. She turned nineteen today and Itachi wasn't here to share it with her.

-

Itachi sighed to himself as he and Kisame walked. Another mission gone. The duo waded through the grass country, currently venturing through a particular tall meadow.

"That was far too easy," Kisame remarked. "You'd think such a high-prized diplomat would be harder to kill."

"Hn." Although he agreed, complications of their assassination were the least of his worries. Akatsuki was a little less than a day's journey back from the grass country, and he needed to get back  _today_.

Just then, a cluster of new chakra presences appeared. Judging by Kisame's grin as he reached for Samehada, he sensed it, too.

"There we go," the shark grinned. Had Itachi's been anyone else, he would have rolled his eyes.

_Of course._ Now the late diplomat's body guards were chasing them.

-

Despite not feeling like it, Akira forced herself through a solo training session and then retreated to the kitchen. Even if she was alone, she could still cook her favorite meal.

She'd strategically hidden the ingredients to chicken stir fry in one of the less visited cabinets in anticipation of today. She'd wanted to make it as a dinner for her and Itachi, but now it looked like he would have to settle for leftovers.

If there were any, for that matter.

She knew better than to explore any of the member's rooms other than Itachi or Konan. She found solitary card games epically boring, and, save for more training, the most she had to do was attack Itachi's ever-growing library.

Akira groaned as she headed toward the Uchiha's room, not even bothering to clean the dishes from her meal. Why couldn't somebody just get hurt already? It would at least give her something to do.

-

Kisame growled as one of the grass nin's blades raked across his back, drawing blood. Kisame, disemboweling the ninja in front of him, had failed to notice the additional attacker. Itachi, meanwhile, was preoccupied with three opponents of his own.

"I think we pissed them off, Itachi-san!" Kisame called, successfully smashing Samehada into his new attacker's neck and allowing the weapon to subsequently drain the man's chakra. Two more ninja attacked, to which Kisame delivered a powerful kick to send the first flying and yanked out Samehada just in time to crush the next.

Itachi's didn't bother replying as he caught one man in Tsukuyomi before frying the next with Amaterasu. As the tears of blood slid down his cheek, Itachi knew he would have to ask Akira to heal his eyes again soon. He didn't like doing that very often as he knew what a strain it was for her chakra-wise.

_Two down, one to go._

The final shinobi began a series of hurried hand signs while Itachi and Kisame rushed toward him. He disappeared from sight just as Itachi came to a graceful stop and Kisame swung Samehada only to strike air.

Kisame and Itachi warily took stances, waiting for the next attack. With the nearly waist length grass and the occasional boulder around them, there were many places to hide.

Itachi closed his eyes, searching out the enemy chakra. He had to be somewhere…

_There_! The Uchiha's eyes shot up, both his arms raised in an X block with two kunai as he blocked the grass nin's attempted surprise attack. The opponent bounced off Itachi's defense, his next target Kisame.

_Amaterasu!_  Itachi used the black flames for a second time that day. He caught the end of his opponent's left leg, crippling him just in time for Kisame to finish the job with a slice of his giant sword.

"Took you long enough," Kisame scoffed, examining the carnage around them.

Itachi glowered, trying to ignore the ache in his lungs from the techniques he used. The medicine helped enough to keep the coughing at bay during most missions, but just in case, he had a stash of the glowing green pills in one of his weapons pouches.

"We should continue. I would like to get back before evening," Itachi stated simply, and with that, he continued walking.

Kisame shrugged, re-harnessing Samehada. "What's the rush?" he muttered, but didn't argue further.

-

Akira jolted awake as the book in her lap slipped from her hands. One could only read so many books on weapons, strategy, and village histories before all of the above became considerably dull. She'd succumbed to a nap of boredom already, and it was only four in the afternoon.

Sighing, Akira set aside the textbook and placed it on the nightstand. Itachi's room didn't have a lot aside from books to begin with, but it felt especially empty without him in it.

As a wake up, Akira headed back out to the training grounds to further perfect her shockwave jutsu and push herself a bit further on the mizubushin. It was nearly pointless fighting herself as she already knew what she would do, but in the least it gave her something to hit.

By the end of her second training session, she was hungry again, and ended up eating the leftovers initially intended for her and Itachi later that evening. Not that he knew about them, so it didn't particularly matter.

By the time she finished and washed both her current dishes and the ones from this morning, Hidan and Kakuzu returned from their mission. A slur of profanities greeted her as Hidan walked in, complaining about being hungry. Kakuzu rolled his eyes. The older man had a bag tucked beneath his arm, probably a bounty from their latest excursion. Clearly not wanting to be bothered with anything food-related, Kakuzu scurried off to inventory his winnings.

Akira felt exceedingly grateful that she had finished her meal before Hidan arrived. Knowing him and how he loved her chicken stir fry (he'd eaten her leftovers before), they probably would've ended up in another fight, and this time Itachi and Deidara wouldn't be here to bail her out of a near-death experience.

Not wanting to be bothered and especially on her birthday, Akira headed back to Itachi's room.

"I'll take boring books over Hidan any day," she muttered. Worse yet, neither Hidan nor Kakuzu required her healing abilities, so there went that idea, and, if she trained again, her muscles would be screaming by tomorrow.

Out of ideas, she headed back to Itachi's room for more monotonous reading.

-

"Itachi, shouldn't we stop for a break or something?" Kisame questioned as they jumped from tree to tree. It was well past their usual dinner-time and Itachi had refused to stop at any of the passing villages.

"We can eat back at Akatsuki." They still had at least a good three hours left, not including any more than likely distractions. They couldn't afford to stop. He'd never make it in time.

Surprisingly, no other ninja detected them on the road, but, with Kisame's pestering, Itachi finally agreed to stop for dinner at a small village just outside Amegakure. They only had an hour left of travel time, but of course Kisame had picked then of all times to have one too many cups of sake.

By the time they were on the road again, it was well past ten o'clock at night.

"I don't understand why you seem so frustrated all the sudden, Itachi-san," Kisame slurred. "You've been distracted all day."

The Uchiha's eyes narrowed further as he paid for their bill and exited the restaurant, his shark partner somehow managing to walk in a semi-straight line behind him.

With Kisame inebriated, the trip took even longer. By the time they arrived, it was well past eleven.

_Finally!_  Even Itachi's patience had worn thin as he twisted the Akatsuki ring on his finger and performed the seals to open Akatsuki's stone door. Kisame had long since stopped caring about the Uchiha's sense of urgency and, if anything, supported it now that he was drowsy and eager to sleep.

"Remind me to get Akira to heal my back tomorrow," Kisame murmured. The wound likely still stung, but the blade hadn't been poisoned and the cut had closed enough to not be a great danger. Either way, Kisame felt too tired to care.

Itachi also sensed Hidan and Kakuzu's presences as he and Kisame entered the premise, although both immortals were in their rooms. Next, he sought out Akira. Of course she was in his room. He walked as fast as he could without looking suspicious, but, once again, Kisame was too tired to care. The Uchiha's door opened with a soft click. The only light in the room was the lamp from the nightstand.

Akira sat on the bed, her back leaned against the pillows and her head supported by the bed frame. Her long hair was down as opposed to its usual braid, framing her face in a way Itachi secretly adored. Her shoes were by the door, and her ninja headband on the nightstand opposite to the lamp. Other than that, she had long since shed her Akatsuki uniform and instead wore her usual black ninja outfit.

A stack of books lay beside her sleeping form. Not her ideal pastime, but likely she'd run out of ideas.

Creeping through the room so as to not wake her, Itachi slipped off his shoes and unbuttoned his uniform, replacing the standard garb in the closet. Next, he sought out what he spent his entire day trying to get back to.

All Akatsuki closets had top shelves in which most members kept spare clothes, books, weapons, scrolls and even trinkets. Itachi was no exception to the last bit. The Uchiha reached until his hands felt a small wooden box. He brushed the dust of its polished surface with one hand and then carefully removed the lid.

Itachi stole a glance back at Akira to ensure his movements hadn't woken her before returning his attention to the contents.

Although he would die before admitting he had one, this was his keepsake box. It held a frame with his family's picture before the massacre, every note Sasuke had ever written him, a cluster of dead flowers from his teenage love interest, and a few other little things like key chains, the wolf mask from the hanabi festival in Akira's village and several additional smaller boxes. Itachi's hand rested on a particular rectangular one encased in black velvet.

Never in his wildest dreams had he thought he would bring this out again.

Upon removing the velvet box, Itachi replaced the lid and slid the keepsake box back into its original place hidden in the darkness of the closet.

With quiet footsteps, Itachi made his way over to the bed. Box in one hand, Itachi placed his other over Akira's and pressed his lips to her forehead. She stirred in her sleep and seconds later, her eyes opened halfway.

"Itachi?" Her tone was groggy with sleep. Nonetheless, she smiled. "You made it."

"Barely." The clock beside them read eleven thirty-five. He pressed the velvet box into her open palm.

"Happy birthday, Akira."

-

Akira blinked in confusion, taking a few seconds to register what had just happened.

_Did Itachi just give me a birthday gift?_  Wiping the sleep from her eyes, Akira turned her attention to the rectangular velvet box. What could it be?

With great anticipation, she opened it to reveal a necklace. The chain and trimmings were silver and the stone a polished red. The shape of the charm was an elongated diamond, smooth to the touch and painted with a tasteful black kanji reading "fire."

"Itachi, it's beautiful!" Her eyes glimmered. Itachi couldn't help but smile. "Will you help me put it on?" With fumbling hands, she positioned the piece around her neck. The chain was long and the charm rested just above her navel as Itachi fastened the clasp.

"Where did you find this?" she asked incredulously, still eyeing the beautiful piece. It didn't look like anything she'd seen in the whirlpool village and not just because of the fire kanji.

"It was supposed to be my mother's."

She blanked. "What?"

"I intended to give it to her as a birthday present. It was from the same jeweler who constructed the piece I wear daily. Unfortunately, the massacre happened first."

Her fingers instinctively touched the necklace. "Itachi, I can't accept this!"

His lips brushed her cheek this time. "Please do. The most it did previously was gather dust."

She hesitated, but saw the sincerity in his eyes. He wanted to give this to her. All her refusal would do now is insult him. Her expression softened into a smile as her fingers brushed the charm once again.

"In that case, I would be honored to accept such a beautiful gift." And with that, she kissed him on the mouth. "Thank you. It's more than I could have ever hoped for."

Task at last finished, the exhaustion of the day set in, and Itachi scarcely had enough energy to change into nightclothes before he collapsed on the bed next to Akira.

"Is this a bad time to ask if you need your eyesight healed?" Akira inquired, absentmindedly playing with his ponytail while Itachi lay face-down against the pillows. "It's been two weeks since our last session."

"Tomorrow," Itachi murmured, too tired to care. "Don't let me forget."

Akira laughed softly. "All right." And with that, the Hyuuga girl curled up next to the Uchiha, head on his chest and he reached to turn off the lamp.

-

Akira awoke the next morning with a discontented moan. She opened her eyes to find Itachi gone. Far more distracting was her pounding headache and upset stomach, the latter of which knotted and cramped as if she were about to be sick. Despite her body's protests, Akira forced herself out of bed, but barely took a step before she felt another wave of nausea.

Somehow, Akira made it to the bathroom without vomiting on the floor and emptied her stomach contents into the toilet.

_What did I do?_  Akira wondered, wiping her mouth. With healing hands, she pressed her palms against her temples, alleviating the headache. Her stomach still felt unsettled, but in the least she could think clearly now.

Lying back down on the bed, Akira decided to sleep a bit longer. As she waited for oblivion to overcome her, she couldn't help but bring out the crimson necklace Itachi had given her the day before. The jewelry's cool smooth surface felt therapeutic to her hands as she traced the painted kanji for "fire" with her finger.

She smiled to herself, remembering Itachi's presentation. She felt honored to be given something intended for his mother. Even more amazingly, Itachi had kept it for this long.

Akira tucked the necklace back into her shirt as her eyelids grew heavier. The last thing she needed was to forget and have one of the other members notice she was wearing jewelry all the sudden.

Two hours later, Akira awoke to a loud knocking. Groggily, she sat up and Deidara came in. He had returned that morning from a mission with Tobi.

"Akira? You're still asleep?" He sounded surprised.

"Spent the morning puking," she explained. Deidara walked over to measure her temperature with the back of his hand.

"You don't feel warm, un," he remarked. "You do look pale, though."

Akira looked at him wryly as she swung her feet over the side of the bed. "Who knows? Maybe I ate something that didn't agree with me." Yet she didn't recall eating anything unusual. Her stomach protested the sitting position, but she ignored it in an attempt to save face. As she rose to her feet, she noticed another detail.

"Did Itachi and Kisame leave already?" she inquired. Both their presences had vanished. She had been hoping Itachi merely got up before her.

"Yeah. As soon as Tobi and I got back, Pein called them in. I guess he had another mission."

"Duty calls, I suppose." Seconds after uttering these words, Akira's stomach cramped once again and she cringed at the unexpected pain, clutching her abdomen.

"Whoa, take it easy." Placing a hand on her back, Deidara guided her back to the bed. "Where did you catch a virus? You haven't been anywhere in weeks."

"Tell me about it." Akira smiled weakly at the former Iwa nin. So much for her getting up. "Wish I knew."

"Guess you've got the day off then." Deidara remarked, scratching the back of his head. "Let me know if something changes."

"Hn." She'd been listening to Itachi for way too long.

Surprisingly enough, after lying on the bed in a comatose state for another hour and a half, Akira's nausea vanished as quickly as it'd come. Given, she didn't exactly feel energized, but, in the least, she could sit up without wanting to puke.

"Guess it just needed to get out of my system," Akira mumbled, and with that she lay back down and closed her eyes. A few more minutes of rest couldn't hurt.

For the rest of the day, she was fine. Deidara was shocked to see her feeling so well all the sudden, but Akira shrugged it off and challenged him to a sparring match at the training grounds.

After an otherwise productive day, Akira awoke the next morning once again feeling nauseous. Deidara didn't come in to check on her this time, for which Akira was thankful. Hopefully no one would notice or care if she chose to be anti-social for the rest of the day.

_I miss Itachi._  These random disappearances were becoming more frequent, and, quite the opposite, Pein was sending her on fewer missions. One would think that with all the action going on, their ever-feared leader would want an extra person in the field.

Somehow, Akira located a book in Itachi's library she hadn't read yet about Kumogakure politics. Knowing she had nothing left in her stomach to purge and frantically hoping that she wouldn't dry heave, Akira cracked open the cover, desperate for something to distract her mind.

_Maybe I should ask Itachi for some more books on healing,_ Akira mused. He had a few, but they were only regarding the basic concepts she'd learned during her first few months of training under Kaede-sensei as a preteen. If he was going to be gone all the time, the least he could do was bring her back something to do.

Still, hobbies aside, this odd bout of sickness bothered her. As Deidara pointed out, she hadn't been outside much lately, greatly reducing her chances of exposure to any form bacteria or pathogens, and surely she would be used to anything that resided here after all this time. Her diet remained practically the same (given Akatsuki's limited selection), and the only possibility remaining would be if she caught it from Itachi, who admittedly did have a weak immune system at present.

_His last mission was in the Grass Village. I should look up the common sicknesses from there, first chance I get._ She knew a few, but most of them included considerably nasty symptoms—nothing quite so on and off. If she had a cold, she'd been coughing, and if she had a fever, she'd feel warm. Any other bacterial infections lasted at least a day, not just a morning, and a virus would be far worse.

Exhaling, Akira crossed her arms over her stomach, the origin of her discomfort. She had a bit of a headache again, but she by far hated the nausea more.

_Come on, Akira, you're a medic!_  Surely she should at least be able to come up with some sort of theory. It just didn't make sense.

The least she could do was wait until tomorrow and see what happened. If the symptoms returned, then she could start worrying.


	24. Chapter 24

"You've got to be kidding me," Akira barely choked out the words. This could not be happening.

She was pregnant.

The afternoon following her second day of sickness, Pein finally assigned her to another mission with Tobi and Deidara in the wind country. After the mission, on the way back to Akatsuki, Akira, using the excuse of stocking up on herbs, persuaded the argumentative duo to visit a drugstore. Then, while Tobi and Deidara distracted themselves with something pointless, she slipped away to find an attendant to describe her symptoms to along with a list of illnesses she had suspected and ruled out. And, after some alarmingly personal questions, the woman behind the counter handed her a pregnancy test.

So, here she was. Even with Konan gone most of the time, thanks to her newfound freedom around the base, she spent most of her time in Itachi's room when others weren't around because it gave her more opportunities to see him between missions. Thankfully, people had yet to grow suspicious as to why. But now, Akira didn't know how to face him. This hadn't been a part of the plan.

_Should I tell him?_ How long could she keep this a secret? Itachi could be oblivious to certain details, but overall he was extremely shrewd.

Akira threw the pregnancy test into the bathroom trashcan and buried the pieces under more rubbish for good measure. She didn't even know how far along she was. She and Itachi had been together for months now, and she hadn't been keeping particular track of her menstrual cycle. She'd been irregular anyway, due to gaining muscle from all her training combined with the stress of Akatsuki.

_You'd think we would have thought about this more,_ Akira's face contorted, displaying her turmoil. Honestly, Itachi hadn't expected to live this long, and she… well, she had just been enjoying his company and treasuring every moment she had with him. She hadn't exactly thought ahead.

Worse yet, Akira knew how much prenatal care went into a pregnancy. Even by herself, there was no way she could keep this a secret around so many people. She wanted to be happy. She loved Itachi, and, if situations were different, she'd want to marry him and have his children like every normal girl dreamed about the man she loved. It was normal for ninja to marry, but they couldn't. Itachi had been planning his demise for years now. She couldn't expect him to drop everything for her, could she?

Sasuke meant everything to him, but Akira had wormed her way into Itachi's heart, despite his initial efforts to keep her out. Emotionally, she and Itachi were closer than he had ever been with his brother. Would Itachi be willing to change his plans if she asked him? Would he be willing to put a lifetime's worth of work on the line for her? Or for their child?

She placed a thoughtful hand on her abdomen.

She knew Itachi loved children. Although he had never said it outright, she knew he'd wanted a normal life and a normal family of his own, an opportunity which cruel life itself had stripped away. But here she was, against all odds.

In the midst of her moping, the door opened this time to reveal Tobi. Just what she needed: fake cheeriness to worsen her despair.

"Akira-san, Deidara injured himself again!" the masked man called.

She rose to her feet, not even bothering to fake a smile. Somehow, she managed to hold back her tears of hopelessness. "Training grounds?" she guessed, secretly thankful her voice didn't crack.

"Heh, you know Senpai." Tobi nervously scratched the back of his head.

The former Iwa nin had misjudged the range of one of his explosions and suffered a burn on one of his already re-attached arms. The most she could do was heal the damaged tissue and be thankful infection hadn't set in from previous wounds.

"Deidara, you really should be more careful. These explosions are going to be the death of you," Akira remarked. The two of them sat on the floor of the training grounds. Cross legged, he scowled as she moved onto a different burned area of his arm.

"An explosion would be the only decent way to go, un."

"Senpai, please stop talking about your death. It makes Tobi feel sad!" his partner whined.

Akira couldn't help but chuckle as Deidara snapped his reply. Even in dire situations, these two still made her laugh. A bit later, she had to practically retrain the artist from chasing his partner with more explosives and causing either of them further injury, but, nonetheless, Akira appreciated the emotional boost.

"If you two can stop yelling for five seconds, who wants lunch?" Akira spoke up.

Deidara paused to look at her. "Are you offering?"

"As long as you and Tobi behave." May as well. She was eating for two now, anyway.

She walked into the kitchen with full intentions of making a decent meal, but, being out of other options, Deidara and Tobi only managed to agree on instant ramen.

_Not my most nutritious option, but certainly better than nothing at all._ Akira smiled nervously as she presented the meal to Deidara and Tobi. Come to think of it, she had never seen beneath Tobi's mask…

"Ne, is that Itachi-san?" Tobi exclaimed, pointing just as she set down the Uchiha's ramen.

_Eh?_  Akira instinctively followed his gaze, but looked to see nothing but blank stone walls.

"Not funny, Tobi," Akira frowned, sitting down to join him at the table. Much to her chagrin, she found his ramen to be already gone.

_Was that why…?_

"Don't feel bad. He does that to me all the time," Deidara said. Akira rolled her eyes.

_Where are you, Itachi?_

Just then, two new chakra presences flickered to life on her radar. Of all people, it was Kisame and Itachi.

"Well, I'll be damned," Deidara remarked as the stone door rumbled open.

Akira felt like her heart stopped when Itachi entered the room. His eyes remained cold as he and Kisame headed over to them.

"So you got the memo, too, huh?" Deidara grinned.

"Memo?" Akira looked at them questioningly.

"Pein wants everyone back here within the day," Kisame explained. "Sorry, kunoichi, this a meeting you need to sit out of."

Akira barely finished her ramen before Hidan and Kakuzu returned, although, oddly enough, they had a third presence with them.

"We're back, bitches!" Hidan called, and as they walked into the room, Akira noticed a blonde woman slumped over Kakuzu's shoulder. She was alive, but barely. Her headband bore the symbol for Kumogakure.

"That leaves Pein and Konan before we can get started," Kisame sighed. "Zetsu is probably in there already."

Akira turned to Itachi with a "What the hell is going on?" stare, but he ignored her. "Someone should take Akira back to her room," he said instead. "Pein will not be pleased if she sees too much."

_Too much?_ The fuck! She'd been in this organization long enough to know plenty of incriminating things. What made this situation any different?

"Can't she just go back herself? Pein increased her privileges, un," Deidara retorted.

Itachi turned to the man with a bone-chilling stare. "To prevent her from becoming over-curious, I would recommend an escort."

Kisame chuckled. "Ever the paranoid one, aren't you?"

Deidara huffed. "Well, I looked after her all day, un. Your turn to babysit, Uchiha."

_So that was his intent._  Admittedly, Itachi had a funny way of keeping one step ahead. As they left, Akira stole one more glance at the unconscious woman. She wasn't another healer. Whatever their intention with her, it wasn't good.

He didn't say a word to her as they walked down the dark hallway. It wasn't until they arrived back in Konan's room that he even looked at her.

"You know what I'm going to say," Akira smiled wryly as their hands linked together. He greeted her for real with a heartfelt kiss on the mouth. Akira tasted iron.

"You'll know soon enough," Itachi said. She clutched his hands, not wanting to let him go yet.

"When will you be back?" she asked quietly.

"A few hours. I do not believe Pein has any other assignments for us today."

Akira sighed. She didn't want to be left alone. Maybe it was just the pregnancy talking, but a huge part of her wanted him to send a kage bunshin to the damn meeting and have the real Itachi stay with her, but that would be incredibly reckless. Honesty, she needed the extra time to plan how to tell him. He looked far too exhausted to deal with such a bombshell right now.

"Just don't take too long," she said, and against her better judgment added, "I have something I need to tell you."

"Hn." They kissed one more time before he left her alone. The paper kunoichi didn't have quite as an extensive library as Itachi did, but there was one task she could think of.

"I'm sure I left it around here somewhere…" Akira mused as she opened the closet and began digging through the top shelf. "Here it is!"

She pulled out her old ninja outfit. Although clean, it still bore the rips and tears from her first battle with Konan. May as well mend it now while she had the time. She already knew Konan kept a sewing kit in one of her nightstands, as Itachi did, and brought that out next.

Compared to what she currently wore, her whirlpool outfit was considerably baggier, especially around the waist. Since Akira didn't know how far along she was or when she would start showing, this was the least she could do to be prepared for the times around the base where she would not be wearing the additionally baggy Akatsuki uniform.

Hours passed before she finished. For good measure, Akira tried on the clothes to make sure everything still fit properly. With the Hyuuga patches missing, the formerly medium length sleeves were converted to sleeveless and the spare material was used for patching and touch ups. She just barely finished slipping the shirt over her head as the door opened to reveal the last person she wanted to see: Konan.

Akira forced herself not to cringe as the paper kunoichi stared her down.

"Can I help you?" What else could she say? She hadn't seen the stoic paper kunoichi in weeks.

Akira followed Konan's eyes to the outfit she wore. She flustered defensively. "Look, I had the time to fix it, so I did. Hope you don't mind if I used your sewing kit."

"Not at all," Konan said, and finally entered the room.

"Am I with Itachi tonight? It's been forever since you and Pein stayed here," Akira remarked, hoping with all her might the answer was yes. What was the point of even trying to start a conversation? Nothing she did ever phased the woman.

"If you wish." Akira didn't like the way she said that at all. She couldn't know about her and Itachi, could she?

"Well, if you're going to be staying here, I probably should," Akira remarked, hands on her hips. She sensed everyone's chakra returning to the main room, although the Kumo woman's presence was gone. Knowing Itachi, he would be returning to his room soon to rest, allowing her to spend some time with him.

_And tell him about our little situation,_ she added mentally. Still, she dreaded it. As if it wasn't bad enough already. She had no idea how he would react.

-

Itachi trudged out of the Akatsuki meeting, exhausted from the day's events. They had successfully extracted the two-tails from Nii Yugito's body, and, at the end of the meeting, Pein urged each of them to hurry up with capturing the remaining biju.

He hadn't told Akira the full extent of Akatsuki's intentions, and understandably she'd been confused at seeing Yugito's body. Part of him didn't want her to know the truly dark intentions of this organization.

Kakuzu, Hidan and Kisame all participated in a poker game with celebratory bottles of sake. Deidara sat on one of the couches, molding his sculptures, and Zetsu hung about the area watching. With everyone distracted, Tobi took advantage of the moment to meet with Pein regarding further developments, and Konan had disappeared ahead of him to rest in her room.

When Itachi finally reached his room, he could feel the bile in his throat rising. By the time he entered and closed the door behind him, he didn't even have time to greet Akira as he collapsed in a coughing fit.

-

"Itachi!" Akira's eyes widened as the Uchiha crashed inside, hand covering his mouth as coughs shook his body. When he fell to the floor, Akira fell with him, cushioning his fall as they waited out the episode. He convulsed violently, but she held on tight.

Akira knew it was over when he relaxed in her arms. With a sigh, she kissed his feverish forehead. "Where's your medicine?" She hadn't seen it in its usual place in the bathroom cabinet.

"Nightstand on my side of the bed." Itachi smiled wryly. They were far too used to this. By the time she got out the glowing pills and he swallowed them with a swig from his water bottle, Itachi had calmed down considerably, but Akira was far from it.

_I can't tell him like this_. Itachi needed to sleep.

No words were needed as they moved to the bed. The medicine only prolonged the inevitable, and Itachi's time was growing thinner.

Akira sat with her back on the pillows as Itachi rested his tired head on her lap. Even though he lay on his side, she could still access both eyes easily enough. Her palms lit up with healing chakra as she cupped his major source of headache.

Itachi was asleep within minutes. He didn't even stir as she carefully lifted his head from her legs once she was done, turned off the light, and repositioned herself beside him. Her head lay tucked against his chest, right where she could hear his heartbeat.

Thankful he wasn't awake to see it, Akira placed a hand on her stomach.

_I wish I could tell you, Itachi,_ Akira thought. A tear slid down her cheek.  _You'd make such a great father._


	25. Chapter 25

Akira awoke the next morning to a familiar feeling of nausea. Getting up and subsequently throwing up was becoming obnoxiously routine for her.

She wasn't surprised to find Itachi gone again. Honestly, at this point, she was thankful. She had chickened out yesterday about telling him. Technically, she could justify her actions with the excuse that he had needed sleep, but Akira knew, being too scared, she hadn't made time. Now for the next few days, she didn't have any choice but to remain silent.

Scarcely had she finished her daily ritual of throwing up in toilet did she sense an oddly familiar presence, and it wasn't Itachi. Wiping her mouth, Akira forced herself to her feet in time to see Konan burst into the room.

The paper kunoichi panted, clutching her side. Her face was dirtied and blood ran from the side of her mouth, the most disheveled Akira had ever seen her. All feelings of nausea vanished as she focused her attention to the paper kunoichi.

After ensuring the door was indeed closed, Akira set to work. She caught the kunoichi, careful to avoid aggravating her more obvious injuries, and guided her over to the bed. By now, she was barely conscious.

Akira quickly removed Konan's tattered uniform to reveal her skintight outfit and symmetrically pierced belly button. A great deal of the blood flowed from a stab wound just below her left breast, inches from her heart.

She was lucky her opponent missed his target, but if Akira didn't act soon Konan would still bleed to death. It amazed her the paper kunoichi had made it this far with such an injury. But where had Pein been in all this?

Just as Akira's hands lit up to begin healing, a familiar shock reached her fingertips. Konan hadn't just been stabbed—she'd been poisoned.

_Amegakure, of course!_  Akira realized. She had to act quickly.

A stash of her personal medical supplies lay in the nightstand on her side of the bed, a feature she recently added to Itachi's room. Akira flung open the drawer, desperately fumbling around for a familiar pouch. She found it beneath several rolls of bandages: the vial containing Itachi's cure from the poison without a name. They didn't have time to wait for Konan to ingest it. She needed to inject the antidote into her bloodstream immediately.

While Akira brought out a syringe from her first aid kit, Konan groaned on the bed. Quickly, but carefully, Akira pinned down one of her arms in which the veins were thankfully bulging and shoved in the needle.

Konan didn't relax, but Akira knew the hard part was over. While the antidote acted, Akira straddled the thrashing woman to hold her down as she pressed her glowing palms against the injury. Many other areas were bleeding and damaged, but the one nearest to her heart required the most immediate attention.

As the wound closed, Konan's wide eyes finally began to relax. Still wary, Akira only let off some of the pressure as she removed herself from the full mount position over Konan's hips, and now merely hung by her side.

Somehow, she was still conscious as Akira moved onto her less severe injuries.

"Pein will be disappointed," Konan murmured.

Akira scoffed as she moved her hand to the kunoichi's bruised ribs. "You're alive. What's so disappointing about that?" Oddly enough, she had a hard time being angry at Konan right now for all the cold shoulders and previous beat down during her first week at Akatsuki.

"I allowed this much to happen," she said simply. Her dead amber eyes stared blankly ahead.

Akira moved both hands to the woman's forehead where a welt formed beneath her eye, curving all the way to her brow. "What exactly happened?"

"I was out scouting a few miles from here. They had an ambush waiting. I should have sensed them, but I didn't."

"How many were there?"

"Over a hundred."

Akira stuttered, "H-hundred?"

"Yes."

Akira had to force herself to continue the flow of healing chaka before speaking again. "I'd say you did just fine coming out with only poisoned wounds, fractured ribs and a concussion."

"To an average ninja, I suppose." Akira frowned at Konan's response. They waited the next few minutes in silence before Akira finished healing her. Just in case of anything else, though, Akira injected an extra pain killer.

"There," Akira said, stopped the flow of chakra to her hands. "I wouldn't move around too much, but you'll certainly live."

Despite her warning, Konan sat up.

"Oi!" Akira bristled and attempted to make her lay back down. "Don't push yourself! Whatever it is can wait."

"Pein needs me."

_Why is she so devoted to him, anyway?_  Akira wondered. This woman was cold, but extremely driven when it came to following Pein.

"Just wait a few minutes while your body catches up with everything. You could pass out and then I'd have to heal whatever you injure from that," Akira reasoned, and, with great reluctance, Konan lay back down on the pillows.

_Took long enough,_ Akira mentally sighed. But still, something was odd.

"Why is Pein so important to you?" Akira inquired. She probably wouldn't reply, but what was the worst she could do? Pein had forbid anyone from killing her.

Much to Akira's surprise, she spoke.

"We've been together since childhood. He has a dream. I wish to help him achieve it." Maybe it was the drugs talking, but whatever it was, Akira stared at the kunoichi in a whole different light.

"Does everyone in this organization hold to the same dream?"

"No." Even more surprisingly, Konan smiled. It was small, but her lips definitely curved upward. "But we have enough in common to commiserate."

Akira looked back sympathetically. "Don't know how you made is so long being the only woman here. How do you put up with all these guys? Most of them are moodier than the girls back in my village! And considerably more violent."

At this, Konan's smile grew, although she did not answer. Her eyes flickered with drowsiness.

"I never had to room with Uchiha Itachi."

Akira laughed. "Yeah, he can be especially moody. I think it's an Uchiha thing, but hey, still beats sharing with Hidan."

Konan laughed this time, something Akira had never heard before. Against her better judgment, Akira placed a friendly hand on Konan's shoulder.

"Seriously, sleep. You'll be far more useful to Pein once you've had some rest."

Konan looked as if she were about to say yes, but before she could, she stopped. As if she heard a noise, Konan made a hand sign and touched her Akastuki ring. Akira scowled as the paper kunoichi shook off the exhaustion and forced herself to her feet, her legs more wobbly than when Akira had smashed her against a wall all those months ago.

"Pein wants us both in the meeting room."

_And just when we were getting somewhere,_  Akira mentally lamented before she grabbed her Akatsuki uniform from the closet and followed Konan down the hall.

"Looks like everyone is here," Pein's voice stated as she and Konan entered the room. Although most of the members were not here, as Akira had seen before, blurs of chakra represented their presences.

"We captured the junchuriki," Kisame spoke first. "We had to take a few precautions to ensure he wouldn't escape." He surveyed the room. "Where's Hidan and Kakuzu?"

"They're dead." Akira blood ran cold at the words.

_Weren't they immortal?_

"Really?" Kisame chuckled. "So the zombie twins are dead, eh? I wish I could've seen how they were killed."

Pein was unamused. "Don't talk about your fallen comrades like that."

"Who got them?"

"Leaf ninja," Zetsu's black side spoke. "It was Kakashi and the nine tails jinchuriki again."

_What?_  Akira didn't recognized some of the terms. She knew about the jinchuriki, but she didn't know any Kakashi. But the leaf village… that was where Itachi was from.

Her gaze flickered to the Uchiha, but she was not surprised when his chakra form did not return her gaze.

"They're strong, aren't they?" Tobi remarked. "No wonder Deidara-senpai got beaten up!"

"Tobi!" the clay nin was clearly annoyed.

_Who would be strong enough to beat up Deidara like that?_ Akira wondered. Deidara was strong, but she clearly remembered how battered he had returned last time. It had taken easily twice as long to heal him as it recently did with Konan and the poison.

"If I had my patience with you in a bag, I'd be bursting at the seams, un!"

"Ha, your patience in a bag? Like your bag of exploding clay?" Tobi had his hands raised pacifistically. "No wonder you have such a short temper."

"Tobi, I'm gonna kill y—"

"Shut up, Deidara, unless you want to prove Tobi right," Pein interrupted. Begrudgingly, Deidara cooled his temper. Kisame chuckled at their antics, but Pein was not finished. "And Tobi, you're always taking things one step too far. You're making your senior very angry."

"Right, right! I'm very sorry!"

"How do you expect us to catch all the jinchuriki if you keep goofing around?" Kisame added. Pein shot the shark a glare at the interruptions, but said nothing as Kisame continued, "Anyways, I'd like to seal the four tails as soon as possible."

"Hang on. I've got other things to talk about," Pein said.

"What?" Kisame was clearly annoyed.

"Someone else has been killed."

"Who?"

"Orochimaru." Itachi's eyes showed a glint of emotion at the name. Akira recognized it. That was that snake sannin, a former member of Akatsuki before he'd attempted and failed to get Itachi's body (for which she was especially thankful) before moving on to the Leaf village to try his hand at acquiring Itachi's younger brother.

_He's dead, too?_ This was certainly a bad day for that.  _What about Sasuke?_

"It's been years since he's left Akatsuki," Kisame remarked. "I suppose his time finally came, eh? Whoever killed him must have been something else. Who was it?"

"Uchiha Sasuke."

_Now that makes sense._  Itachi seemed un-phased by it all, but Akira knew he felt something.

"I wanted to kill him, un," Deidara frowned.

"How impressive," Kisame turned to his partner. "You must be proud of your little brother, Itachi-san." Realistically, he probably was.

"He's gathered a few underlings," Zetsu continued. "All of whom could be problematic for us."

"Oh?" Kisame seemed surprised.

"You should know one of them, Kisame," Pein said, "One of the Hidden Mist's Hoizuki brothers."

"Suigetsu? Now that takes me back."

"Juugo of Tenpin is also with them," Pein continued. "Itachi, Kisame, you two need to stay alert. They're probably going after you."

Itachi said nothing, but Akira knew what he was thinking. His plans with Sasuke were drawing to a close. Obscured by the darkness, Akira placed a protective hand over her stomach.

"Everyone else, remember what I've told you about Uchiha Sasuke," Pein stated. "If he learns too much about Itachi and Kisame, he may try to disrupt Akatsuki's plans."

"Hey, Kisame, what's the deal with the Suigetsu guy you mentioned?" Deidara inquired. Honestly, Akira had been wondering the same thing.

"I last saw him ten years ago," Kisame replied. "Cute kid. Always smiling. He'd always chop the limbs off his enemies before beheading them. People called him the second coming of 'Zabuza the Devil.' A child prodigy in the art of murder."

"They sound like an interesting bunch, un." Deidara concluded, smiling sinisterly. Likely, he envisioned making art out of his next victim.

Now where did she come into all of this?

"Akira," Pein turned to her, "I asked you to come here and hear of our plans for one reason alone."

_Which is…?_

"When Kisame and Itachi bring back the four tails jinchuriki, it will be your job as Akatsuki's medic to ensure he remains alive and unconscious. The last jinchurki came far too close to dying before we removed the tailed beast. The will same apply for all the other jinchuriki to follow. You do know what a jinchuriki is, correct?"

"Yes." Itachi had at least explained that much to her.

_So I get to keep them alive before Akatsuki kills them?_ Akira mentally cringed. It violated everything she believed as a medic, but they would kill her if she didn't, and now she had more than just herself to protect.  _Kami, forgive me._

"Good then. Meeting adjourned."

Akira was numb, even as the presences disappeared.

"I will need to obtain another Akatsuki uniform," Konan stated, and Akira knew she meant visiting the storage room. "I have much to do."

"Where would you like for me to wait for Kisame and Itachi to return?" Akira asked quietly.

"The main room should do," the paper kunoichi replied. "And Akira?"

Akira looked up to meet her gaze.

"Thank you for healing me."

Akira did not have to wait long for Kisame and Itachi to return. An older man with flaming red hair and a scraggly beard dangled from Samehada's tip. The symbol on his forehead protector matched Deidara's.

"We're back, Akira-san!" Kisame called. Akira gripped the bag containing her medical supplies, knowing Pein would want the junchuriki in the meeting room where they could properly extract the biju.

"Let's get this over with." Even Itachi's presence wasn't working to soothe her.

Hours passed before Pein reconvened the meeting. The task of maintaining the four tails had been simple enough with a few bandages and a powerful sedative.

"Deidara died." Akira's heart dropped at their leader's first words. Hidan and Kakuzu were one thing, but Deidara? Although he'd begun as her captor, now he was, or rather had been, her friend.

"He finally went out with a bang."

"We lost another member. And to think he was quite strong," Kisame remarked wryly. "So which one did he lose to? Sasuke or the Kyuubi's jinchuriki?"

Zetsu spoke up, "Sasuke, but…" All eyes turned to the Aloe Vera, "Sasuke died, too."

Nothing could have ever prepared Akira for Zetsu's words. She gasped quietly, and not even caring if anyone saw, Akira gripped her stomach. Thankfully, the only one close enough to notice was the four tail's unconscious host.

_Itachi…_  Her eyes turned to him. She couldn't imagine what he must be going through right now.

"Deidara killed himself along with Sasuke." Kisame was unsurprised.

"Be grateful of him, Itachi," Pein stated, "Deidara gave his life to eliminate trouble."

"Hm, we're forgetting something," Kisame mused.

"Tobi probably died, too. Deidara exploded with Tobi nearby," White Zetsu added.

Akira didn't know how much more of this she could take today. Hidan, Kakuzu, Deidara, Sasuke  _and_ Tobi?

"Ah yes, it was Tobi," Kisame said. "But he was good at running and even he couldn't get away in time. Must've been a big jutsu."

"It's fine. A man of that level is easy to acquire," Pein stated simply. "Deidara was special, though."

"The ability to turn a gloomy organization cheerful," Kisame lamented. "Tobi was a skilled man at that."

"I'm going," Pein finalized, forming a hand sign. "At least mourn for Deidara quietly." With that, he was gone. Konan and Zetsu followed soon afterwards.

Akira desperately wanted to say something to Itachi. She didn't know what, but anything—if Sasuke was dead, what did that make of them?

_I need to tell him. We still have a chance at this!_  Akira thought, sad for his loss, but secretly excited for their future. This could actually work.

"I need to go to my room to get a few things," Kisame stated. "I'll be right back, Itachi-san, then we can get a move on."

"Hn." His face was blank. His eyes were dead.

Only when Akira was positive Kisame was gone did she turn to face him. Itachi's irises were black now. She drew in a breath to speak.

"Don't." He silenced her harshly. Understandably, he was upset. "Sasuke's not dead."

"You heard Pein. There's no way he could survive something like that."

"He has to." Itachi didn't sound as desperate she expected, but still, he was distraught.

_Can I tell him now?_ Akira wondered. Even if the time was bad, when would she have another chance? Could she afford to wait with the hope she would see him again in the next week?

She clutched both his hands in her own, lightly caressing him with her thumbs.

"I'm sorry, Itachi."

He pulled her into a tight embrace. She hugged him back, making small, comforting circles on his back. Then he said, "Forgive me." His eyes flashed red.

-

"Forgive me." Itachi couldn't think of anything else to say. As her surprised eyes fell heavy and closed, he sealed the distance between them with a kiss as her figure fell limp in his arms.

Sasuke wasn't dead. Itachi didn't care what Pein said. His brother was resourceful, and he would find a way to survive. He always did.

But Akira—Itachi couldn't just leave her here. His final battle with Sasuke was imminent. He needed to be ready, and, even if she hated him for it, Akira needed to get out of here.

With the Hyuuga girl now sleeping as soundly as the jinchuriki beside them, Itachi initiated the next part of his plan.

Scooping up her legs, Itachi carried Akira out of the meeting room. Her head lolled against his shoulder. She would not stay this peaceful for long.

He carried her all the way to the bedroom they shared and unlocked the door with his eyes, a trick most had yet to discover he could do. He laid the girl's unconscious body on the bed.

She would definitely hate him for this. He couldn't change that, but nothing in this world or the next could alter his love for her. She had been an unexpected addition and the light of his world, Sasuke be damned.

The most he could do now was let her go. His Akatsuki ring glinted on the nightstand as he kissed Akira one last time. And with that, he was gone.

-

Kisame sighed as he exited his room. May as well stock up on those extra scrolls, especially after such an arduous fight with the four-tail's host. However, upon walking down the hallway, he was surprised to encounter Itachi emerging from his own room.

"Aren't you supposed to be the meeting room with Akira?" Although most people would have jumped slightly, Itachi collectedly turned to meet his gaze when Kisame addressed him.

"I realized I needed something from my room, as well," he stated simply. Kisame eyed him suspiciously. Something wasn't right. Then again, maybe it was just Itachi's silent way of coping with his brother's death.

"Hmf. Let's go then."

As they left the base, rain poured from the sky, greeting them. They waited for several minutes, but it continued nonetheless.

"It hasn't let up one bit," Kisame remarked. "It's odd for it to be raining so much here, especially this time of year."

Silently, Itachi took a step forward, his eyes facing the sky. Water poured down his forehead, his cheeks, and his Akatsuki collar. The Uchiha seemed deep in thought.

"Not sure what you're thinking, and given how ruthless you are, it's strange, to say this…" Kisame trailed off. "From here it looks like you're crying."

He couldn't possibly be upset over Sasuke's death, could he?

"It's certainly a shame about your little brother," Kisame continued. His partner still didn't react. "You're now the sole member of the Uchiha clan."

"No." Suddenly, Itachi spoke, surprisingly the shark. The Uchiha turned his head to look at his partner. "Sasuke's not dead yet."

"What?"

Without explanation, Itachi turned his gaze to his reflection in one of the surrounding puddles.

"The storm has passed."

_Heh._  Kisame somehow prevented himself from verbally reacting. Leave it to his partner to make absolutely no sense.


	26. Chapter 26

Akira's eyes fluttered open. Her head ached. Where was she?

_Itachi!_  Her mind snapped to attention and she jolted into a sitting position on the Uchiha's bed. His presence was gone from the base. Her eyes descended to the nightstand. But his ring was still here…

With tentative hands, she reached out to touch the jewelry. Her eyes widened as her brain surged with countless images, emotions and events. These memories—they were Itachi's!

She could see what he saw. The blood, the carnage, and the few but treasured beautiful moments. She could feel what he felt: the guilt, the sorrow, and the undying loyalty and love for what he held dear. And now she knew what he knew. Akatsuki's plan—it all made sense now! But Sasuke—indeed, the boy was not dead. But if she didn't hurry, Itachi would be.

She seized the jewelry, and, not bothering to pack a thing, fled the room and dashed toward Akatsuki's door. The ring was loose on her finger, but she took great care in not letting it fall off. Thanks to the jutsu Itachi placed on the ring, she knew the seals to open the door.

_This was his plan all along_ , Akira realized as the sunlight spilled onto her face from the open door. Her first taste of freedom in over a year—true freedom that didn't just involve being watched by another Akatuski. Another quick series of hand signs and a twist of the crimson ring and the giant stone groaned shut behind her. But her legs didn't run home.

_Byakugan!_ Locking onto Itachi's chakra, she pursued him. _Please get there in time._

_-_

"W-why?" Naruto stuttered his response to the Uchiha. "You're after me, aren't you? Then fight me now!"

"I have to leave you for now," Itachi said coolly. All had gone smoothly. The jinchuriki now had a share of his power, whether he liked it or not. "I have a very important matter to deal with." And with that, his shadow clone vanished into a flock of crows.

A second chakra approached Itachi in a cave where another planted clone stood waiting.

"You're here," Itachi said, purposefully keeping his back turned.

"Who are you?" His brother's voice. At this, Itachi turned around and activated his mangekyou.

"It's me, Sasuke."

His brother's fellow sharingan eyes widened, and they stared at each other. Itachi spoke again.

"Did you get a bit taller?" He knew his words of familiarity would only aggravate the boy, which was exactly what he wanted. He needed Sasuke upset.

"You haven't changed a bit," Sasuke stated coolly," especially those cold, merciless eyes."

"Are you going to scream out and charge straight at me like last time?"

"Hmph. You know nothing about me!" Sasuke retorted, and Itachi could scarcely turn his head before Sasuke rushed behind him and pierced the elder Uchiha with his blade.

"How much hate has enveloped my heart," his brother continued, "how much stronger I've grown because of it. You know nothing."

Itachi's face remained blank as Sasuke charged the blade with lightning.                                        

"How much stronger you've gotten." His clone lay on the ground now, a streak of blood running from the side of his mouth. Sasuke's eyes widened in alarm as what he thought was Itachi dispersed into a flock of crows.

"Come to the Uchiha's hideout," his voice commanded. "We'll end this there."

Itachi's original walked with Kisame along the path leading to the aforementioned Uchiha hideout. This was it. Sasuke would be coming soon. This is what Itachi gambled his life on.

"How'd your brother take the message?" Kisame inquired, grinning his pointy-toothed smile as he unsheathed Samehada. They were right outside the hideout now.

"Well enough," Itachi replied stiffly. "You know what to do?"

"Yeah, yeah, wait 'til the little brat and his minions arrive, and only let Sasuke through. I know Itachi."

"Just making sure." The two stopped at the entrance, a giant set of wooden doors preceded with a line of massive wooden pegs connected with rope, all of which surrounded the giant premise.

"You've been quieter than usual today," Kisame remarked. "Are you that concerned about being defeated?"

Itachi didn't reply. Kisame didn't know he planned to die here. Itachi had purposely projected confidence, cockiness even, regarding this day. Even his partner believed the same lie as the rest of the world.

"Not at all. Just remember to only let Sasuke through."

The shark chuckled. The Uchiha formed a hand sign, but right before he could teleport away, Kisame spoke again.

"And Itachi," the Uchiha turned, "it's been an honor."

His lips tugged upward into a small smile.

Then again, maybe Kisame wasn't as oblivious as he thought.

-

_Dammit!_  This was taking far longer than she'd anticipated. Although she'd never met Sasuke, he was strong. Even from a distance, she could tell. But Itachi's chakra was growing weaker. He was using every technique he had.

"My eyes…" Itachi's lips formed the words as his mangled hand reached out, fingers extended.

"Fuck you!" In a last ditch effect, the younger Uchiha threw a cluster of exploding tags, all of which had no effect thanks to Susanno and the Yata Mirror. So close. He was so close.

Akira could barely feel Itachi's presence now it was so weak. Had she lacked the byakugan, she would not have sensed him. The younger Uchiha backed against a wall. Itachi was inches away. But instead of the anticipated eye gouge, two fingers lightly poked Sasuke's forehead as Itachi's lips moved again.

"Sorry, Sasuke. There won't be a next time."

"ITACHI!" Akira screamed his name as the Uchiha's fingers slid down his brother's face and he crumbled to the ground. Finally, she was there. Like all the other times he collapsed coughing, she fell with him. Skidding to a stop, Akira collapsed to her knees just in time to catch him.

She cradled his head in her lap. Lifeless black eyes stared back at her.

He was dead.

Tears streamed down her face as his blood stained her uniform and hands. Her byakugan deactivated and she stared up at the infamous Uchiha Sasuke.

"Why?" she choked. She'd never met Sasuke before. All she'd seen was a picture of him that Itachi kept from when they were children. Kami, he looked so much like his brother.

"He loved you more than anything!"

Sasuke stared at her with glassy black eyes, probably unable to comprehend her words. Also covered in blood, his chakra was nearly gone, and Akira paid him no mind as he collapsed to the ground beside his brother.

As a medic, she should have attended to the living. She should have been willing to put her feelings of bitterness aside, but she couldn't. As she held Itachi's lifeless body, she couldn't yet find it in her heart to forgive.

"I'm pregnant, Itachi," she whispered. Her fingers played with his matted hair as they often did when he returned from a mission. Tears dripped from her eyes and onto his face, mixing with the blood. "We're going to have a child."

Just not together. Would he have changed his plans if he knew?

Closing his half open eyes, Akira pressed her forehead against his as sobbed racked her body.

_Why, Itachi? Why…_ Of course, right when things were perfect. However twisted, she'd found her place in Akatsuki, and now she was even getting along with Konan. But that was all over. Thanks to his stupid brother, everything was over.

Clutching what was left of her beloved, Akira cried the hardest she ever had in her life.

-

"Now isn't that the saddest thing you've ever seen?" Tobi murmured, almost to himself as he stood atop the wall overlooking the Uchiha brothers. The Kyuubi and his gang had been easy enough to mislead. They were in pursuit, but they would not reach Sasuke before he did.

Somehow, Akira had found a way out of Akatsuki and located Itachi. A familiar crimson ring glinted on her right hand.  _So that's how._  Tobi chuckled. Even in his death, Itachi still took care of those he loved, even to the point of ensuring Akira's freedom.

_Zuzuzuzuzu_

"You're too slow," Tobi remarked as Zetsu revealed himself.

"Well, excuse me for not being able to move my ass at the speed of light."

Obito paid him no heed. "Did you make sure to record the whole thing while you watched?"

"Relax, I got everything," Black Zetsu assured.

"I think I will. I'll relax and enjoy viewing it later," Obito declared. "But for now, we need to get Itachi's corpse and leave immediately."

"You sure that's a good idea?" White Zetsu spoke this time. Obito knew he meant Akira, whose sobs had long since run out. Now she sat there silently, still holding him.

The true Akatsuki leader sighed. "I'll take care of it." And with that, he teleported down to where they were.

-

"Akira." The Hyuuga girl's eyes darted up as she recognized Tobi's voice.

"What do you want?" Instinctively, she clutched Itachi tighter. The elder Uchiha first turned his attention to the younger brother. Even Akira could tell he was fading fast.

"What are you going to do with him?" she asked, her voice shaking. Even if she resented the boy, she couldn't allow Itachi's sacrifice to go to waste.

"Relax, I'm saving his life, as I doubt you will." Madara slumped the unconscious boy over his shoulder. He attempted to change the subject. "Pein will not be pleased to learn you abandoned your post with the four tails."

Akira scoffed. "You run the show, anyway."

He seemed unsurprised at her knowledge. Then again, based on what she learned from Itachi's jutsu, Madara had probably known of their relationship all along.

"I need his corpse, too, Akira."

"Fuck off!" Whatever Tobi had planned, it wasn't a proper burial.

"Don't make me take him by force, Akira-san."

_Zuzuzuzuzu_

Both parties turned to see Zetsu joining them on the ground.

"Go ahead and take care of Sasuke, Tobi-sama," Zetsu said. "We'll take it from here."

"Ah. Well, if you insist." And with that, Tobi formed a hand sign and vanished with the younger Uchiha. Somehow, Akira honestly believed he would not harm Itachi's brother. They were the last of their clan, after all. She turned her attention back to Zetsu.

"You can't have him," she said flatly. Especially knowing the Aloe Vera and his tendency to eat the organization's victims.

"I don't want to fight you, Akira-san," White Zetsu spoke to her this time. "Take Itachi's body and go. Just don't let the squad from Konoha catch you, especially dressed like that." He motioned to her uniform.

She stared incredulously at the plant. "You're—?"

"Yes," Black Zetsu cut off. "Now leave before we change our mind!"

Akira scrambled to her feet. She slumped the Uchiha onto her back, just like when they had first met. Only this time, he wouldn't wake up.

"Thank you." Akira felt more tears well up. And, with that, she disappeared into the forest.

-

Uchiha Sasuke stirred and his eyes finally began to open. Why was he in a cave?

Pain shot through his body when he tried to move. Somehow, he managed to sit up. A blanket pooled at his waist. Sasuke squinted in the candlelight, trying to make out his surroundings.

"I gave you some first aid." His attention shot to a voice in the corner: the orange-masked Akatsuki. "You won." Sasuke wanted to feel victorious, but try as he may, he just didn't.

"It was very close though. You're still badly wounded," the masked man continued. "You shouldn't be so reckless with your life."

Sasuke stared blankly, trying to remember what happened. He recalled seeing Itachi's bloodied corpse and feeling a brief surge of victory, but that was all. Everything else blurred.

"We've met once before as enemies, but don't worry about what happened with Deidara. I am no longer your foe." Sasuke felt too exhausted to care. "I brought you here to tell you something important."

Sasuke retained his usual disinterested front. What did it matter? He achieved his goal.

"Not interested I see." The masked man was persistent. "Maybe you'll pay attention if I say it like this: it's about Uchiha Itachi."

Sasuke instinctively met the man's gaze with a dark glare at the mention of his brother.

"There we go," Tobi seemed amused. "You know so much about your brother, and at the same time you know nothing."

Begrudgingly, Sasuke knew a part of him was curious.

"Why don't I start by introducing myself?" With a small click, the mask came off. "Like you, I'm a living, breathing Uchiha, and the man who knows the truth about Uchiha Itachi."

A lone sharingan flickered to life behind the eyehole of the mask, but the second their eyes met, Sasuke felt his sharingan activate without his consent. Tears of blood slid from his left eye as his iris formed the familiar pinwheel of Amaterasu.

"Impossible!" Tobi's eye widened in surprise as he dodged an impending ball of black flames that nonetheless found its mark on his arm. Sasuke clutched his throbbing, bleeding eye. Tobi's trademark orange mask clattered to the floor as the elder Uchiha attempted to banish the fire.

Through sheer willpower and much grunting, Sasuke reduced his eyes back to their original state. "What the hell was that?" he managed, equally confused and surprised.

"The Amaterasu that Itachi implanted into you." Sasuke could not clearly see in the darkness of the cave as Tobi repositioned his trademark mask. "That Itachi… even in death, he never ceases to amaze me. Even planning for a situation like this."

"What… what are you saying?" That made no sense. Why would Itachi implant him with an eye technique?

"He equipped you with his own jutsu as a last ditch effort to kill me. Or perhaps his intention was simply to keep me away from you. I assume he set things up so the sight of my sharingan would automatically trigger 'Amaterasu' to activate."

Sasuke's eyes widened. His mind immediately rejected the notion.

"Fortunately, I managed to keep a few secrets even from him. If I hadn't, I'd be dead right now. It's what you'd call a fail-safe. Although he only got as far as the 'fail' part."

"I have no idea what you're getting at."

"Look, Itachi did something to you right before he died, right?"

Sasuke's mind unwillingly flashed back to his brother's final forehead poke. He didn't reply, but his lack of expression said enough.

"Somehow, at the last second, he transferred all his eye techniques to you."

"That makes no sense. What are you saying?" Sasuke argued. "Why would Itachi want to—?"

"You still don't know?" Tobi sounded surprised. "It was to protect you."

"Pr-protect me?" Sasuke fumbled his words. "Is that supposed to be funny?"

"As I said before, you knew so much about your brother, yet you knew nothing at all."

Sasuke's black eyes narrowed. "You're screwing with me, and I will kill you."

"I see talking with you is going to be difficult." Tobi seemed unaffected. "I guess I understand. Some weirdo takes you in and starts telling you all these shocking things. You asked him yourself, about the person who helped him that night."

Nothing in the world could have prepared Sasuke for the man's next words.

"It was me, Uchiha Madara. I know everything there is to know about Uchiha Itachi. Of course, he died without realizing just how much."

Sasuke lost it. "Enough!" he screamed, gripping the covers. "I don't care anymore! Go away and never come near me again!"

"No, I think you need—you  _have_  to, question me. It's your mission, your duty!"

Sasuke shut his eyes, desperately trying to drown out the man's word as his mind raced a million miles an hour.

"You need to know about him. The man who risked everything to protect the shinobi world, the Leaf Village, and, most of all, his little brother. You need to know about Uchiha Itachi's life!"

-

Itsumade Kaname hummed to herself as she carried a basket of laundry from her washroom through the living room and up the stairs. Rain pattered softly on the roof of her home and down the windows.

So much had happened in the past year. Yet here she was, back from a mission and attending to her steadily growing pile of laundry. Her parents were gone on a mission and it was the weekend, so all she had to do was homework from Kaede-sensei, although she should train as well.

In the Itsumade's two story house, her bedroom was on the top floor. The ground floor contained a small laundry room beside the kitchen as well her parent's room, a dining room, one of the bathrooms and a living room. Upstairs was a small hallway bearing two closets, two bedrooms and another bathroom at the end.

She had a fourteen-year-old brother named Ryo, who lived upstairs with her. However, he was on a mission, as well. Lately, they hadn't seen much of each other.

The Whirlpool kunoichi opened the door to her room, the first on the left, and walked in. She set the basket down on her bed and had scarcely started folding the first shirt before she hear a pounding on the front door.

Kaname glanced at the clock on her nightstand. It was well-past midnight.

_Who could it possibly be at this hour?_ Abandoning the mundane task, Kaname headed down the stairs.  _Wait, that chakra,_ she realized.  _It can't be!_

Kaname slid the door open. Her eyes widened at the sight before her.

Tear-filled lavender eyes returned her gaze. A black and red cloak caught her attention, and the stench of blood hung heavy in the air. Kaname's emerald eyes descended to a figure crumpled on the ground, who her visitor cradled in black-sleeved arms.

"Kaname…" Akira choked. Blood covered her hands and splotches on her face. "Help me."


	27. Chapter 27

Akira panted, her vision hazy. Finally, she had made it back to her village. Thanks to Itachi's knowledge transfer jutsu, she knew her way back from Akatsuki. Even Deidara and Tobi had managed the trip in less than a day. Now, here she was, exhausted, bloodied, and lugging a dead body. The extra weight had certainly slowed her down, but she didn't care.

She'd transferred some of her chakra into his muscles to slow the rigor mortis, but she didn't have long and knew, regardless of how tired she felt, she had to bury him. Whatever she did with Itachi, it certainly beat him becoming Zetsu's next meal.

But first, there was Kaname. Through some miracle, she was awake and alone at home. Sadly, though, Akira hadn't sensed Eri's chakra anywhere nearby.

Kaname stared dumbfounded at the Hyuuga girl. The Akatsuki uniform probably didn't help. However, she quickly overcame the confusion and rushed to assist Akira in carrying the Uchiha's corpse and rested him on the living room couch, ironically where Itachi had set Kaname after their foiled afternoon at the lake.

Akira stripped off the blood-soaked Akatsuki cloak and, although she knew it did no good to keep the body warm, she felt better as it concealed Itachi's still form.

"Itachi's dead?" Kaname's eyes were wide as dinner plates. "Where… how…?"

"I need to bury him Kaname," Akira said quietly. "Will you help me take him to the woods? I'll even pay you back for the shovels." She doubted Kaname would want to keep something that assisted in burying a dead body.

Kaname nodded slowly, still not taking her eyes off Itachi's corpse.

The rain only added to Akira's misery as she repositioned Itachi, now wrapped in her Akatsuki cloak, onto her back while Kaname obtained two shovels from the Itsumade's shed.

Ten minutes later, they reached the woods. The ground was soft and muddy, and, not wanting to leave footprints, they jumped from tree to tree. Akira felt her foot slip several times, but she somehow managed to steady herself and keep from falling, even with the extra weight.

Her destination was the area below the cliff where she had first found him. To most, it looked like every other place in the forest, but she knew the plants that grew here. Carefully leaning Itachi against a nearby tree, Akira grabbed one of the shovels from Kaname and started digging.

No words were spoken for what felt like hours until the hole was finally deep enough. Kaname jumped out first and offered a hand to help Akira, which she accepted.

She didn't place Itachi in the ground immediately. Somehow, Kaname inferred enough to know she needed a few minutes. She sat beside him under that tree, soaked in water and blood. Her fingers clutched the material of his shirt, and for once not caring about anything else, she kissed his dead lips. His mouth had once been warm and inviting, even when laced with blood. He still tasted of blood, but now the feeling was nothing but cold.

Kaname helped her lug him over to the hole and carefully place him inside.

Never in her life had she wanted to cover his face with dirt like she and Kaname did. The rain washed away the blood from her hands, but the stench hung heavy on her clothes.

She marked the Uchiha's grave with a rock that she discovered nearby and carved his name with a kunai. No one came out here. Likely, any rare soul who did would not realize a simple name carved into a rock was a grave.

_This isn't right._  It was the path he had chosen, but this was not the way a hero deserved to be buried. He had prevented a war, redeemed a village, saved his brother and, although she resented him for it, ensured her escape from Akatsuki.

She smoothed the soil over his grave, further dirtying her hands, and, somehow, she found more tears to cry. Kaname placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, but did nothing more.

She and Kaname returned to the house, still in silence. As soon as the front door closed behind them, Akira collapsed to the floor, energy depleted. Kaname rushed to her side once again and helped her to the couch where Itachi's body had laid.

"Let's get you some dry clothes," Kaname said, smiling softly. "And a hot shower."

Leaning heavily on her friend, Akira struggled to the bathroom in Kaname's parents' room. She didn't have the strength to climb the stairs, and, humiliatingly enough, required her friend's help with undressing. Her fingers were numb and merely fumbled as she fruitlessly attempted to remove anything.

Once the water was running, she stepped inside the shower, and Kaname waited a few seconds to ensure she would remain conscious before scurrying off to procure a new set of clothes. Her Akatsuki uniform had been buried with Itachi, and her tight black clothes from Konan's room lay in a heap on the floor, the only color being the red and yellow from her Hyuuga patches. Itachi's Akatuski ring and the necklace he'd gifted for her birthday rested on the porcelain sink in the bathroom.

The hot water felt heavenly on her skin as the grime, blood and sweat of the day finally washed away. Her long hair was a tangled mess, but soon lay flat as it absorbed moisture. Her hands were still numb as she reached for the soap, and, much to her chagrin, she dropped it several times before painstakingly beginning to wash herself.

Kaname returned before she finished. She asked if she needed help, to which Akira gave a flat, "No thank you." By the time she finished, the bathroom mirror glazed over with steam.

Her body bore several bruises from her missions in addition to several scars she'd received when Itachi or Deidara hadn't been there to protect her. Most of her love bites from Itachi had long since healed over, as it had been a while since they'd had time to do more than kiss. Kaname's jaw dropped slightly when she emerged from the shower, scars and all. The dirt had initially hidden most of the markings.

Her belly had yet to grow, assuring Akira that she did not exceed her first trimester. All the stress of the day had not been good for the child, but, in the least, everything seemed alive and well.

Kaname again helped her dry off and also assisted her in redressing, even down to re-attaching the clasp of her necklace. However, rather than wearing Itachi's ring on her finger, she strung it from the chain around her neck. Her wet hair clung to the oversized olive green T-shirt Kaname lent her as Akira walked back to the living room on her own. By now, Kaname had placed a sheet over the couch to conceal the dirt and several splotches of blood.

To top off the hospitality, Kaname made chamomile tea. Akira plopped onto the covered couch, somehow managing to retain a sitting position while her friend left to retrieve the tea from the kitchen.

Warmth coursed through her body as she sipped the steaming beverage. At last, she was ready to talk.

"So what happened?" Kaname finally said. It amazed Akira her friend managed to wait this long to ask.

"Itachi's dead." She stared blankly ahead. Even after all that, she was still trying to accept it.

"How? How did you find him again? Why were you wearing that cloak?"

"The man who kidnapped me," she began, "his name was Deidara."

"Was?"

"He's dead, too."

"Oh." Kaname looked down at the cup in her hands. "Did you kill him?"

Rolling her eyes, Akira laughed. "No, I didn't kill Deidara. We actually became friends after a little while."

"What about Itachi? How did you find him if this 'Deidara' kidnapped you? Wasn't there another guy involved? Tony or something?"

"Tobi," Akira corrected quietly. Akatsuki's true mastermind. "There was more to him than met the eye. All of them, Itachi, Deidara and Tobi were a part of a criminal organization called 'Akatsuki.' Their uniform is the black and red cloak you saw me wearing earlier."

"Criminal organization?" Kaname looked alarmed. "Why did they want you?"

"I was their healer."

"And Itachi? When did you two… uh…"

"About two weeks after I arrived."

"That was fast." Akira closed her eyes, trying not to take offense at the comment. "When did you join them?"

"I didn't 'join' per say. They handed me a uniform the day after my first mission. I really didn't have much of a choice." She'd killed for them. She'd stolen and lied, too. But she hadn't put a line through her forehead protector.

"What's the organization's goal?" Kaname inquired, taking another sip from her tea.

Akira smiled wryly. "That one is a bit complicated."

"It's already late." Kaname motioned to a nearby clock mounted on the living room wall. It was past four in the morning. "Try me."

Before replying, Akira gulped down the rest of her tea. She probably burned her tongue in the process, but after today she didn't care.

"Kaname, I'm exhausted," she finally said, eyes drooping. "I'll explain everything, I promise. Can I just tell you tomorrow?"

With great reluctance, her friend agreed. Somewhat refreshed from the tea, Akira required little assistance in climbing the stairs to Ryo's room, where Kaname insisted she sleep.

"He's not going to be back for a while, and I refuse to let you sleep on the couch!" she had reasoned. Akira was far too tired to argue.

Akira felt oddly numb as her friend embraced her before she left. She hadn't experienced non-sexual touch in over a year, save for the occasional high five from Deidara or bone-crushing hug from Tobi. Nonetheless, she fell asleep the moment her head hit the pillow, and her sleep was dreamless.

-

Memories flashed before Sasuke's eyes as he stared out at the sun setting over the ocean before him. Madara and his team gathered at his back, but they knew better than to interrupt his alone time. He needed to think.

Madara's words, Itachi's lies—they all made sense now.

His brother had truly loved him. More than anything and more than anyone.

Tears of regret and pent up sorrow streamed down Sasuke's face. He couldn't remember the last time he cried, not like this. A hawk cawed in the background. Even from the distance, his team could see the sobbing shake of his shoulders, but Sasuke didn't care.

It took several minutes for the Uchiha to compose himself. By now, Madara had joined him with the rest of his team close behind.

"Our group will no longer be known as 'Hebi,'" Sasuke declared. "From now on, we refer to ourselves as 'Taka.'" From Snake to Hawk. Something he had never expected. His team nodded in acknowledgement.

"And 'Taka,'" Sasuke continued, "only has one purpose. One goal." He activated his newfound Amaterasu. Karin gasped softly. "The complete and utter destruction of the Leaf."

Hours later, Sasuke was back at that same place again, staring this time at the night sky. Now, only Madara joined him.

"What are you doing? We finished preparing a while ago."

"Staring at the full moon like this brings back memories of that night," Sasuke explained. "Including memories I've tried to repress. I can remember Itachi now. Things I tried to keep locked away in the depths of my heart are coming back to me."

He could see it all. Right before Itachi had fled the scene of the clan's murder, Sasuke had fought back. Pathetically, but he'd tried to throw a handful of kunai at his traitorous brother. Amid the chaos, he'd knocked off Itachi's forehead protector and as the Uchiha rushed to put it back on, Sasuke had glimpsed something he wasn't supposed to see.

"He was crying." Even with Madara's silence, Sasuke knew he'd heard him. "I thought I was seeing things. I couldn't accept it." Sasuke chuckled to himself. "Apparently, you were telling the truth, after all."

"What will you do with Itachi's eyes? Will you take them as your own?" Madara questioned. The elder Uchiha had mentioned accepting his brother's eyes would grant him eternal sight and unlimited use of Itachi's eye techniques.

"No." Sasuke looked ahead thoughtfully. "The result Itachi wanted to see was the exact opposite of what my eyes are about to witness." Madara said nothing. "I can't follow his wishes. I'm going to resurrect the Uchiha in my own way."

-

Akira awoke the next morning, every muscle and joint in her body aching. As a familiar sickness washed over her, she dropped out of bed in an exhausted heap and practically crawled to the bathroom at the end of the hall.

She was home. Sort of—in the least, she had survived her time at Akatsuki.

Kaname was already awake. Judging by the unusually overwhelming aroma, she was making breakfast. Probably from the smell, Akira's body convulsed as she leaned over the toilet to empty what little water was left in her stomach.

She descended the stairs a disheveled mess. By the time she got to Kaname in the kitchen, Akira determined to heal herself as soon as she sat down, regardless of how ill she felt. She plopped onto the floor behind the table. Two mugs of green tea were already situated on the smooth sleek surface.

Akira hesitated. She really shouldn't. As tired as she was, caffeine was not something her child needed right now. Kaname came out a few minutes later carrying rice, fish and re-heated soup. She sat down across the table from Akira, and with a simultaneous "Itadikimasu!" they started eating, minus the green tea for Akira.

"So…" Kaname began, fiddling with her chopsticks. "How are you feeling?"

Akira chuckled softly. "If you want to know details that badly, you can just ask." Kaname seemed taken aback, but Akira knew she was still curious.

Kaname hesitated. "Only if you feel up to it."

Akira knew she couldn't tell Kaname absolutely everything. She'd sworn to keep Itachi's past a secret, and the most she could divulge about that was, due to the nature of the organization and "circumstances" of his past, he had ended up there. She left out the part about her pregnancy, as well, although Kaname did discover she and Itachi were regularly sleeping together long before his death.

Akatsuki was much easier for her to explain. Their goal was revenge on Itachi's home village of Konohagakure, where the real leader "Tobi" was coincidentally from. Each members possessed different individual preferences, but overall, their "leader" Pein, sent them on missions that worked toward his main objective.

The part about Itachi's involvement with her escape was the hardest for her to tell. She fought tears as she recalled the events to Kaname and explained the ring he had given her. She didn't go in depth about Sasuke, but she admitted the brothers had feud going on, which resulted in Sasuke swearing to kill Itachi, in which he succeeded.

The knowledge from Itachi swam around in Akira's brain. She had difficulty differentiating it all from her own, until she focused on one memory from his youth that did in fact concern her.

"And one more thing," Akira began, looking at her hands. "Do you remember when I was brought here as a child?"

Kaname looked confused, but nonetheless replied, "Yeah. I was one of the first people who talked to you at the academy. Eri was my neighbor, so eventually you met her as well."

"Good times." Akira smiled to herself. "I told you what happened to my original village, right?"

"Yes…"

"Well, the part I didn't remember was that a Konoha ANBU team brought me here. Itachi was in that squad. He was the one who found me."

"What?"

"Itachi used to be leaf village ANBU," Akira reminded. "When I was ten and he was twelve, my village was slaughtered by a passing gang. Itachi and his team were the ones who investigated and brought me here."

"That's certainly ironic," Kaname murmured, gripping her tea with both hands. "Fate brought you back together again."

Akira laughed softly. "Twice."

An overlapping silence grew, and Akira was not surprised when Kaname brought up the next issue. "Kaede-sensei will want to know you're back. What are you going to tell her about Akatsuki?"

"I don't know," Akira admitted. "I never expected to get this far." Honestly, she had expected to die at Akatsuki.

"Well, my parents are returning later this afternoon," Kaname continued. It was almost ten in the morning, so they still had a few hours. "I think it would be best if Kaede were the first to see you."

"What about Eri? Is she on a mission as well?"

"About that…" Akira didn't like the way Kaname spoke at all. "Eri is… well…"

"Is she all right?" Akira's eyebrow knitted with concern.

"She's missing, Akira. Eri has been missing for three months."

-

Obito chuckled softly. Last night after he had left Sasuke to his brooding, the team leader demanded they not leave until morning, which it finally was. Everything was falling into place. Although, thanks to Zetsu's unexpected act of kindness, he lacked Itachi's actual eyes, but the younger Uchiha had still reacted as expected, and worst came to worst he had other sharingan eyes the Uchiha could use. Now the plan to crush Konoha could officially begin. It would take time, but it would occur.

Kisame stood on one of the many balconies surveying the Uchiha hideout, likely watching the sunrise. Tobi appeared beside him.

_Now to solidify things._

"Kisame, I need to talk to you about something."

"Zetsu already came by to bother me, now you?" Kisame was clearly annoyed. "I thought you were dead, Tobi."

"I guess you're the last one. I'm sorry for deceiving you for so long, especially since you were closest to him." Judging by Kisame's expression, he knew Tobi was talking about Itachi. With a soft click, the Uchiha removed the mask for Kisame, as well.

The shark's silver eyes formed a brief look of surprise and then filled with ironic laughter. "So you're 'Tobi.'" Kisame chuckled. "I never would have guessed. This puts me at ease. With you pulling the strings, it'll be much easier for me to move about, Mizukage-sama, or should I say  _Madara-san_."

"I'm counting on you, Kisame." Tobi clicked back on his mask, formed a hand sign, and disappeared from sight.

Kisame shook his head, both at the discovery and the Uchiha's exit. "And just when I thought the week couldn't get any more interesting."

-

Karsuma Kaede shuffled through a mountain of paperwork on her desk. They had been getting a lot of ninja in the hospital after returning from missions and others who didn't make it back at all. More than usual.

_Something is not right,_ Kaede mused, knowing her brother Hayato probably suspected the same. She would have to bring up this issue during her next meeting with him.

Just then, two ninja made their way into her office. She looked up to see Uzumori Saito and Harumi Misaki. She folded her hands below her chin in her usual leadership pose.

"Back from your mission, I see. Where's Kyo?" Her brother Hayato was at a meeting, and for the time being, she was in charge. However, the third member of Saito and Misaki's assigned team was missing.

"In the hospital. We were attacked on the way back," Saito said quietly. "Misaki sensed them coming. That's the only reason we're alive."

"Did you find out where they were from?"

"Amegakure."

_Again?_  That village was attacking their people more and more. Hayato needed to take action immediately. She looked up to dismiss the two, but, just as she lifted her chin to speak, a scene distracted her.

"Hey, let me go, I need to see Kaede-sensei!" It was Kaname. One of the guards was restraining her. With all the recent attacks, Hayato had tightened security, especially for his beloved older sister. Unless someone had an appointment, they were not permitted to enter the healer's office, students included.

"Let her in," Kaede called. Oftentimes, the two guards did more harm than help. This was not the first time something like this had happened.

"And the other one?" Kaede's eye darted to the entrance where the guards stood with another hooded figure.

"Proceed." She couldn't sense the figure's chakra. They were with Kaname, but why was their chakra cloaked? Judging by the body shape, the person was female. Save for the hooded green jacket, the rest of her clothes were black. Saito and Misaki also watched the scene, curious as Kaname and the mysterious girl made their way over to her desk.

Just then, the figure's chakra flickered to life, and she lifted the hood. Long blonde hair spilled out from beneath the jacket and lavender eyes stared back at her. Saito's jaw dropped, Misaki's eyes widened, and Kaede could barely contain her surprise.

"Akira?!"

-

"Akira?!" At her sensei's words, Akira stared straight with cold, dead eyes.

Out of her peripheral vision, Akira noticed Misaki slip her hand into Saito's. Eri's disappearance hadn't been the only thing she missed around here.

"Kaede-sensei." Akira stared into her teacher's bright purple eyes. "I've returned."

Kaede sat there, dumbfounded. Saito, on the other hand, wasn't.

"Where the hell have you been?!" he demanded, and Akira noticed Misaki move her hand to the boy's shoulder in an attempt to calm him "We've been worried sick about you! We thought you were dead!"

"Not dead," Akira corrected, no longer smiling. "Kidnapped."

"How did you escape?" Kaede's surprise vanished as quickly as it came. "I did some research. The way Eri described the orange-masked man—that was Akatsuki, right?"

"Akatsuki?!" Saito anger only grew. The organization's popularity had grown in light of recent events. "Kaede, why didn't you tell us?"

"I'd heard of the organization before, full of S ranked criminals and terrorists. I sent out several search parties for Akira and found nothing. I assumed she was dead, and didn't want to shatter your undying hope that she was still alive. I feared it would interfere with your duties."

"So you lied to us?!" Kaname spoke this time.

"I didn't lie." Kaede met the girl's gaze. "I simply did not tell you everything."

"One way or another, I'm here and I'm alive," Akira interjected, not wanting the conversation to escalate.

"How did you escape?" Kaede asked again, turning her stare back to the Hyuuga girl.

"The organization originally had nine members. Thanks to the Hidden Leaf, four of their members died within the span of three days.

"So, you waited until their numbers were down?"

Akira nodded. "I returned late last night. My chakra was nearly gone and I had no energy to come here. Kaname was kind enough to take me in for the night."

"I take it you've heard of Eri's disappearance as well?"

Akira nodded again.

"I fear it may have something to do with the ninja that kidnapped you in the first place," her sensei stated. "She was the only one here to come face to face with an Akatsuki and live to tell about it."

Akira secretly hoped Tobi hadn't returned to finish the job, although knowing him, it was entirely possible. There was only one way to find out.

"Kaede-sensei," Akira spoke in the most commanding voice she could muster. "I have a proposal to make." She hoped this wouldn't come off the wrong way.

"Go on."

"I spent the last year in Akatsuki's captivity. From my experience there, I learned a great deal of information regarding each of the members, dead and alive, which may prove useful to us and our allies. In exchange for the information, I have three requests."

"Which are?"

"I want my name left out. Tell our allies the information was from an anonymous contact. Likely, Akatsuki will be looking for me, which brings me to my second request."

Kaede nodded. Judging by the woman's expression, her first request was reasonable enough.

"Second, I would like your permission to leave with Kaname to find Eri. If she is indeed dead, then we'll find her body and bring her back here. Either way, upon my return, for both my safety and more importantly the village, I cannot stay here."

"Where will you go?" All eyes turned to Misaki, who finally broke her silence. "What place do you have other than here?"

Akira stared back at her teacher with more determination that anyone had ever seen. "For my third request, I wish to go to Konohagakure and study healing under the legendary sannin and their hokage, Tsunade."

A hush fell over the room. It felt like an eternity before Kaede replied.

"I am hesitatant to allow you to leave the village again so soon, Akira," she began. "However, I am also aware that you and Kaname will leave to look for Eri regardless of what I say, so I will inform Hayato of both your return and intentions."

Kaname sighed with relief. Akira continued looking ahead.

"As for Konoha," she began, "I make no promises, but I will look into it."

At long last, Akira's face broke into a smile, and, barely able to contain herself, Akira bowed.

"Thank you, Sensei!" she exclaimed. "I won't let you down!"


	28. Chapter 28

Koizuki Eri stared ahead, uselessly toying with the meal of eggs and toast in front of her. Even if she tried to force herself to eat, she wasn't hungry. Three months she had barricaded herself in this cabin. Her time was drawing short, but still she couldn't bring herself to go home.

Her swollen belly prevented her from sitting too close to the table, and, with little else to do, Eri reminisced of how she had ended up here.

(Six months earlier…)

Winter was coming to the tiny Whirlpool Village. Not snow, but certainly colder weather. Akira had been missing for months, and by now Eri and Kaname were accustomed to trips with only the two of them. They had long since abandoned hopeful conversations of the many things they would do together upon the Hyuuga girl's return.

Secretly, Eri had not given up looking, but seeing how sad it made Kaname whenever Akira was mentioned, she kept it to herself. Eri had seen that orange-masked man herself, and every night, she placed a mizubunshin onto her bed, cloaked her chakra, and slipped out of her parents' house to once again patrol the area where Akira was last seen.

She couldn't remember having ever skipped a night, save for when she was out of town on missions. Even then, she found herself wide awake at night while those around her slept. For what felt like an eternity, her efforts proved futile and any traces of her friend or the missing nins long since vanished. Until one night, her efforts paid off.

It was just another night creeping about and dodging wild animals in the woods. At this point, she had long since strayed away from the outskirts of the village where the masked man's blonde partner had been and now advanced her search into the forest extending outside town. The duo could have taken her friend anywhere. Although tonight, rather than the usual bustle of animals and wildlife, this time, she heard a loud  _boom_ near the forest's stream, leading her to a campfire where two voices argued loudly.

"Tobi! How many times do I have to tell you not to touch the fire while I'm out, un?!" Likely, he'd left his partner to take a bathroom break.

"But, Senpai, Tobi was only trying to help—"

"You burned the fish! That means I have to either go all the way back down to the river and waste more of my explosive clay, or we both go hungry for dinner tonight, un!"

"Tobi is sorry, Senpai…"

_Tobi?_  Eri concealed herself behind a mess of bushes roughly ten yards away from the duo. That voice and that mask, and undoubtedly those two chakras—this was the same team that had taken Akira!

Ensuring her chakra remained concealed, Eri watched a few moments longer. Kaname or Akira would have charged in right then and there, but the dark-haired girl was a far better strategist than either of her friends.

"Look, I certainly don't feel like skipping another meal tonight, un," Deidara continued, "so you—" although she couldn't see, she heard the ex-Iwa nin shove something into his partner's hands, "get rid of this disgusting burnt stuff and wait for me to get back."

_That explains the explosion I heard earlier,_  Eri thought.  _But who in their right mind uses explosives to fish?_

The blonde ninja, apparently named Deidara, headed out of sight again. She needed to think of something and fast. She hadn't spent all those nights patrolling and researching just for nothing, and—

Her thoughts ended the second she felt the cold steel of a kunai against her throat. Her chocolate eyes widened as Deidara's chakra reappeared behind her.

_How did he do that?_  she wondered incredulously. She hadn't sensed him at all.

"Well, look what we've got here, un." The blonde bomber smirked. "An eavesdropper."

The next thing Eri knew, Deidara yanked her out from the bushes and forcibly dragged her by the arm over to the campfire where the one named Tobi stood. Deidara had locked her arm behind her back with one hand and dangled the kunai formerly pressed to her throat from the other.

"Hey, Tobi!" Deidara called, twirling the kunai with his free hand. "I vote we blow her up, un!"

"Eri-san?" The kunoichi's eyes widened in shock when the Uchiha addressed her by name.

"You know her, un?" Although she could not see him as he currently had her arm jacked in a rear hammerlock behind her back, he sounded appalled.

Scowling, Eri turned away. There was no use making a run for it. Although she could easily extricate herself from a lock like this, this was the only shot she had at finding anything about Akira.

"She was with Akira-san when I asked her to come heal you." Eri would never forget such a gratingly immature voice. Clearly, it aggravated Deidara, as well.

"You never mentioned she had any friends with her at the time, un," Deidara frowned. Clearly, he was pissed.

"You never asked, Senpai! Besides, I managed to get Akira-san to come all by herself, didn't I?"

With the duo caught up in arguing, now was her chance. Bending her wrist down to prevent Deidara from raising her arm any further, Eri stepped diagonally between his legs and used the force of her body to elbow him in the face with her free arm. While the shock from her strike set in, Eri intercepted Deidara's kunai and pivoted so that she was behind him and pressed the kunai to his throat to finalize the technique.

"Don't move or I'll kill your partner," Eri challenged, glaring daggers at the one named Tobi. "Where is Akira? What have you done with her?"

"Now let's not get violent," Tobi began, frantically motioning with his hands.

Mimicking what he had done with her, Eri pressed the kunai tighter against Deidara's throat.

"Then start talking! Is she alive?"

"Relax, kunoichi. Your friend is alive." For being at knifepoint, Deidara was surprisingly calm. But, before she could demand further information, he melted into clay and she felt a square kick in her back. Not expecting the strike, she fell face first into the clay.

"Now," the real Deidara pressed his knee into her floating ribs and further shoved her face down in the clay of his clone, clutching her wavy dark hair to hold her in place, "aren't we in a predicament, un?"

Eri glared death at Deidara with her only eye the clay didn't obstruct. That had been foolish—she should have expected him to use a substitution jutsu.

"If you're going to kill me, you may as well do it now," Eri growled. In the least, she knew Akira was alive. She could die knowing there was still a chance her friend could come home.

"A pretty thing like you? Why would we do that, un?" Deidara smirked evilly. "You see, Tobi and I are here on a mission that's going to take a few days, and thanks to my wonderful partner here, we don't have any money to spend on a hotel."

"How is that my problem?"

"Well, you live here, un, and clearly, you want information on Akira. I'm offering you an unusually generous deal. Not only will I let you live, but in exchange for food and housing for the next few days while we finish out mission, I'll give you information on Akira."

"Senpai, are you sure this is a good idea—?"

"Shut up, Tobi!" Deidara snapped, and then turned back to her with an unusually cheery tone. "So, what do you say, kunoichi, un?"

These guys were clearly criminals. If she were caught by anyone in her village, the penalty for aiding and abetting them would be severe, maybe even costing her life. But they had information on Akira. Besides, she'd been sneaking out for months, and even her parents had yet to catch on to that one.

"Fine, deal!" she snapped. "Now get off me!" Far more slowly than she would have liked, the former Iwa nin released his knee from her back.

Eri shoved the Iwa nin's kunai into her weapons pouch for safe keeping and then stood up.

"You two may want to put out that fire. You won't be needing it."

Five minutes later, the fire was out, the charred fish buried and the trio made their way back in the direction of the village. Housing-wise, she couldn't risk her parents finding these two, and asking Kaname for help was out of the question, which left only one sensible option.

"Whose place is this, un?" Deidara questioned when they arrived.

"Akira's," Eri said curtly. "Thanks to you, she hasn't needed it."

Out of habit, Eri had kept a spare key to Akira's house and even dropped in to clean sometimes, in hopes that the place would not be a complete wreck when her friend returned. But as the months grew longer, her cleaning sessions had significantly lessened.

"Excuse the intrusion," Eri muttered under her breath as she unlocked the door and slid it open.

She turned back to Deidara and Tobi while the two slipped off their shoes at the entrance. "Please ignore the mess."

It's not that the place was cluttered or anything, just dusty. Thankfully no one had broken in or attempted to steal anything yet.

Deidara whistled. "Nice place for living by herself, un."

Eri briskly walked into the kitchen and turned on the light. Next, she opened the cabinet above the stove, where several non-perishable food items still resided.

"These should serve as enough of a meal until I'm able to go shopping tomorrow," Eri said, bringing out two packaged ramen. "Akira's bedroom is down the hall, and the study is right across from it. Unless you two want to share a bed or have one of you sleep on the floor, I suggest one of you sleep on the couch."

Deidara claimed Akira's bedroom, and Tobi got the study. The orange-masked one was surprisingly submissive when it came to his partner. Was he really a missing nin?

Eri procured clean sheets and pillow cases from the washroom while Deidara and Tobi settled in. She assured them that most people did not pass this way, so it would be unlikely for someone to notice the house suddenly being inhabited.

"Still," Eri cautioned, "be wary."

Deidara snickered. "No need to worry about us, kunoichi. We've been at this a long time."

Eri ignored the sick feeling of nostalgia when she reentered Akira's room to set up Deidara's bedding. The area was untouched from when Akira was last here. The only thing missing was the fishbowl Eri had taken back to her home to ensure Akira's two fish, Kisame and Kin, wouldn't die.

One detail slightly out of the ordinary, though, was the overturned pictured of Itachi and Akira from the hanabi festival on top of Akira's nightstand. The shattered glass from the cover had long since been cleaned up, but the photo remained face down.

"Seems like a very Akira-type place, un," he remarked, whistling again as he examined the blue walls bearing a target for weapons and several kanji paintings.

"You may want to eat your dinner before it gets too late," Eri's voice cut. The one named Tobi was already in the kitchen and she still needed to set up his bedding in the study. Despite her soft spoken nature, she was having difficulty playing maid with the two who had taken away her friend.

Much to her chagrin, Deidara peeked at the overturned picture on Akira's nightstand beside the one of her family and the other with Kaname and Eri. Eri was surprised when he stifled a laugh.

Her eyes narrowed. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing, un!" Deidara snickered, clearly lying, but Eri felt no desire to pursue the issue. "Who's the guy?" He pointed to Itachi.

"Uchiha-san, a friend of Akira's." Eri spoke slowly, trying to read his expression.

Still snickering, Deidara put down the frame and finally headed to the kitchen after Tobi. Brushing off the occurrence, Eri finished replacing the bed sheets and moved to the study with a blanket and a clean pillow for Tobi.

_What am I doing?_ Eri wondered as she fluffed Tobi's pillow. She'd certainly had brighter ideas, but how else could she find out about Akira?

Once Deidara and Tobi were fully situated, Eri headed back to her own home. Ushering the water clone formerly sleeping on her bed out the window, Eri released the jutsu and allowed the excess water to spill onto the grass. With a defeated sigh, she glanced at the clock on her nightstand, which read four in the morning.

Considering some of the nights she'd endured before, three hours of sleep wasn't bad.

Her parents were their usual naive selves at breakfast. Being the only ninja in the family, she could scarcely relate to them on anything, let alone ask for help.

As usual, she met up with Kaname, although her healing lesson with Kaede-sensei was quite a drag. Her exhaustion combined with sitting still for so long caused her to dose off. Kaname elbowed her a few times as a wake up. Despite the rudeness, Kaede-sensei said nothing as Eri forced herself to take notes and somehow managed to maintain a steady chakra flow when they tested the day's healing lesson on fish and birds.

After class, Eri told Kaname she had errands to run for her folks and headed out to the market to shop for Deidara and Tobi. This was certainly not her favorite part of the day, but she did the best she could for not knowing how long Deidara and Tobi would be here.

When she returned home, Deidara's chakra was gone. She found Tobi wandering aimlessly about the perimeter, and without thinking, she questioned him.

"Where's Deidara?"

"Eh?" The hyperactive ninja made an expressive gesture with his hands, and Eri sweat-dropped. "What do you want with Senpai?"

"Just wondering." It wasn't like she was worried. "I don't need him getting caught."

"Well, you don't have to worry about that, Eri-san! He's off exploring."

_Research?_ Eri's sweat drop didn't disappear.

"Exploring the perimeter," Tobi elaborated. The movement in his hands seemed to be compensating for the lack of movement she couldn't see behind his mask.

"And how does that benefit him in not getting caught?"

"He flies!"

Shaking her head, Eri walked inside to start making dinner. How much could she really trust anything Tobi said?

Deidara didn't return until nightfall. By then, Tobi had already retired to Akira's study and Eri was doing her homework at Akira's table. The front door flung open, and, hair disheveled and looking exhausted, Deidara trudged past her, but not before Eri uttered, "Dinner's in the fridge if you want it. Tobi was nice enough to save you some."

Without even a simple, "Un" of acknowledgement, Deidara veered his course into the kitchen. She heard him open the refrigerator door, fumble around for a pair of chopsticks and then head off to Akira's room, dinner in hand.

Eri frowned.

_He'd better not spill anything._

Deidara's routine disappearances continued for the next three days. She'd check on them just before she was supposed to leave for school with Kaname, both him and Tobi supposedly still sleeping, come back, and Deidara would be gone. Tobi would continuously give her the same lame excuse, and, after walking away, Eri would roll her eyes.

_Why doesn't he ever take his partner with him?_  Eri wondered. What was the point of having a place to crash if you never stayed? Was he only blackmailing her to babysit his partner? Tobi had to be good for something, right?

It wasn't until the fourth day that she actually saw the clay nin again before nightfall. Tobi kept talking about Deidara "flying" to get to his destinations, but no matter how she imagined, Eri could not think of a jutsu that would allow for such movement save for a summons, and somehow Deidara did not strike her as the contract type.

The light breeze tousled her dark hair as she walked down the path leading to Akira's house. Rather than her usual red and black get up, Eri was dressed in a light blue top with a pointed collar, a flowing white scarf fashioned as a belt, and black pants. Her ninja headband rested around her neck and her clothes were trimmed with a darker blue color which matched her ninja shoes.

Eri her way to the grassy area at the back of the house where she typically found Tobi wondering. However,this time she found Deidara rather than Tobi. His back was turned to her.

He threw something on the ground, but from her angle she could not tell what, formed a hand sign, and muttered something. A puff of smoke filled the air and the next thing she saw amazed her.

A giant clay bird, large enough to ride on, lay before him, its wings fluttering slightly in the leftover smoke. Could that have been what Tobi meant?

_A bird made out of explosive clay? Can it actually fly?_

Before she could so much as advance a step toward him, Deidara unceremoniously leaped onto the giant clay creature, and, just before he could form the hand sign to take off, Eri opened her mouth.

"Where are you going?" How he could hear her over the strong wind, Eri had no idea, but somehow, he did. Rather than taking off, he turned around to face her.

"Finishing my mission," he said simply with a shrug. "Leader-sama was getting impatient. Told me I needed to hurry up."

_Leader-sama?_ Eri wondered.

"So you're not just 'exploring' this time?"

Deidara gave a sideways smile. "Is that what Tobi calls it?"

Eri folded her arms and nodded. "It's a miracle no one around here has caught you yet."

Deidara laughed this time. "Trust me, kunoichi. No one in your pathetic village could possibly detect me, let alone catch me, un."

Eri bristled at the insult. "Akira did."

"And look what happened to her."

Tension filled the air.

"Well,"Deidara began forming his hand sign, "Guess, I'll be going then."

"Wait!" Deidara paused mid-hand sign and gave her a curious look. "Ano…" Eri blushed slightly, although why she did not know. "Why don't you ever take Tobi with you? He's your partner, isn't he?"

Putting down his hand completely, Deidara laughed sardonically. "That idiot? No way."

Eri gave him a look, expecting him to say something else. He did, but most certainly not what she expected.

"Do you wanna come, un?"

"Eh?"

This time, he frowned at her. "I'm not repeating myself, kunoichi, un. Yes or no will suffice."

Eri's head spun. Come with him to where? Did he mean around her village? Farther away? Did she actually expect her to  _fly_  with him? On that? Could it even safely fit both of them?

It was ridiculous. Beyond stupid. What she was already doing was reckless enough.

In the few seconds it took her to reply, Deidara tapped his foot impatiently, but before he could make any more snappy remarks, Eri surprised even herself at her next words.

"Sure."

Yes, it was stupid. Yes, it was reckless. Yes, she had no idea where they were going. But in all honesty, she didn't care. She wanted out of this godforsaken place where she felt nothing but guilt for her friend's kidnapping.

Two steps forward and with a slight tug of her hand, Deidara pulled her onto the bird with him, completed the ever-interrupted hand sign, and they were off.


	29. Chapter 29

Wind whipped blonde and black hair alike as the clay creature flew through the midday sky. Summoning all the air Eri could into her lungs, she screamed through the wind currents, “Where are we going?”

He looked back at her through a mess of blonde hair. “Sunagakure!”

“Eh?”

“I have a bodyguard mission there.”

“You have a  _what_?!”

(Earlier that week…)

_“Leader-san has a mission for us!” Tobi sing-songed the whole way to the meeting room. Deidara scowled._

_“Shut up, Tobi!”_

_Still fuming, Deidara walked in to meet Pein and Konan, Tobi, despite the outburst, skipping nonchalantly behind him._

_“Deidara, Tobi,” Pein nodded at both of them. Deidara grumbled and Tobi likely smiled behind that mask of his. “I have a mission for you.”_

No shit, un _, Deidara had to bite his tongue not to say this. His fists were already clenched._

_“I must admit, you were not my desired team for this,” Pein continued. “But given all other possible members are off on different assignments, I am left with little choice.”_

Get on with it…

_“A valuable source of ours has requested a personal body guard for a short duration.”_

_“What’s the catch?”_

_“Our client is an important government official under the kazekage of Sunagakure.”_

_Oh, right. The place with the kazekage he’d kidnapped. And murdered._

_“Our client’s name is Miyamoto Nobuo. He is one of the vital Suna contacts we used to lead to our successful kidnapping of the kazekage.”_

_“So what his deal now? Someone find out?” As if it wasn’t already bad enough that he probably couldn’t blow stuff up while trying to protect someone._  Not beautiful at all, un.

_Pein turned to him with his usual deadpan. “Bad business deal with Takigakure.”_

_“Okay, so?” Admittedly, they could be vicious. Kakuzu was living proof of that._

_“He has received very clear threats of attack and has requested a body guard for the duration of three days.”_

_Deidara scoffed. “What kind of a ninja sends an attack warning?”_

_Pein turned to him with a cold stare, but by now Deidara was unflinching to it._

_“The Taki businessman requested compensation for his losses, which Miyamoto-san refused. Threats were sent, but it is uncertain whether or not they will be carried out.”_

_“So we just get to chill in Suna for three days, un?”_

_“You are to follow whatever orders he gives you. He is, after all, paying us a handsome sum upfront for covert protection. The kazekage does not know of his botched business deal and Miyamoto-san intends to keep it that way.”_

_-_

Eri clung to Deidara for dear life, fingers digging deep into skin and gripping the back of his black and red uniform. She’d always dreamed of flying through the sky as a child, but doing so on an explosive clay object run by an S criminal who may or may not be clinically insane was not exactly what she had in mind. Still, she had to admit, risks and ridiculousness aside, this was kind of fun.

The view was beautiful. The Whirlpool Village was small and annexed between Amegakure and Iwagakure. Sunagakure was practically a straight shot if you went far enough in the right direction.

The Whirlpool Village, made up of refugees years ago from the now destroyed Land of Whirlpools, resided nearby a river which ran between the two bigger countries and was more of an independent small village as opposed to a part of either one. Some parts of the Whirlpool Village were cold and rainy, much like Amegakure, and others were mountainous like Iwagakure, such as where they lived. The weather was typically chilly but not overly rainy unless they ventured into the mountains.

The trip to Sunagakure was shorter than Eri anticipated. She’d read about some of its founding and history, but even with all of her missions, she’d never been there. They landed surprisingly smoothly, and, in a surprising act of compassion, Deidara held out his hand to help her off the clay bird. Much to Eri’s chagrin, her legs shook wildly.

“First time flying, un?” the clay nin smirked.

“Y-yes,” Eri stuttered, hoping her queasiness didn’t show as her feet made contact with the sandy ground. However, she did end up stumbling and momentarily clinging to Deidara’s shoulder for a few seconds as she regained equilibrium.

“Still wondering why I never took Tobi on any of these trips, un?”

Unable to do much else and afraid of puking should she try to speak, Eri shook her head. The entire trip had been a few hours, but she hadn’t started to feel queasy until more toward the end.

“Where are we?” Eri finally asked. She could see the village from a distance, but their current location was a giant lump of sand.

“About a half a mile from our destination,” Deidara replied, absentmindedly taking a scroll out from his robes. He lightly bit down on his thumb and spread the resulting blood across the paper, bringing forth a puff of smoke. However, what he summoned was most certainly not what she expected.

It was a… hat?

“You’ll need this if you want any hope of not getting sunburnt,” Deidara stated, not even bothering to ask her permission as he plunked the woven object onto her head and then replaced the scroll in his cloak. She peered at him from a gap between the white paper curtains.

“What about you?”

He laughed at her. “I grew up in Iwa. Ain’t exactly cold there, un.”

Eri apprehensively glanced back and forth between their vastly differing skin tones. Admittedly, he was far tanner than her pasty self. Most residents of the Whirlpool Village were quite pale, save for those who genetically possessed more melanin in their skin.

“Anyway, un,” Deidara continued, “we’re supposed to meet our contact here soon. They have an underground route through the sewers to our client’s place to avoid being detected and all that, un.”

“Sounds good.” Not much she could say to that. It made sense that a government official would live near the center of the city where most of the action occured.

“Deidara-san.” The two of them turned to see another male standing a few yards away from them dressed in a tan flak jacket, dark pants and a white head wrap and adjoining white sheet that obscured most of his face, but with visible dark green eyes and tufts of brown hair peeking out from beneath the wrap. Likely, he was one of Miyamoto’s servants and also their guide. “This way please.”

The three of them kept walking until the sea of sand ceased and was instead replaced by a rock ledge overlooking the village. From there, the contact led them to a meshed pothole, which must be the entrance to the sewers Deidara had mentioned. She and Deidara watched as the servant dislodged the metal top and motioned for them to follow.

“My apologies for our methods, Deidara-san,” the servant said as the Iwa nin began his descent. Deidara merely shrugged and, as she entered in after him, Eri braced herself for the sickening odor to come.

The servant was the last to enter the sewers, making sure to replace the top before joining them. All things considered, the area was somewhat… clean, considering it was a sewer, but the unmistakable scent of urine and fecal matter still hung heavy in the dank surrounding air.

“Follow me.” The guide said, striding to the front of their little line.

They walked for what felt like miles before reaching their destination. The three of them were required to ascent a ladder and remove another metal pothole before Eri recognized sounds of civilization.

Their guide exited first, then Deidara, and then her. Surprisingly enough, Deidara once again offered a hand to help her out. Knowing a mouth resided on the hand gripping her own unnerved her a bit, but given the situation, a detail like that was the least of her worries.

Sunlight stung the Whirlpool girl’s eyes as she adjusted to the bright Suna sun. Suddenly, she regretted returning Deidara’s hat to him amid their trip in the sewer.

The three of them stood outside a grand gate complete with guards and everything. The overall outside look was tan and stone-like, which was understandable given their desert surroundings, but even with the lack of green, it was grandiose.

Their guide said a few words to the guards, who merely nodded mutely and allowed the three of them to pass. Trying to ignore the stink on their clothes and muck on their feet, Eri found herself following unusually close to Deidara, who didn’t seem to mind.

They reached the entrance of the house where two more servant, both ladies dressed in black and white maid outfits with Suna hitiate stooped down and began removing their shoes.

The action startled Eri, but considering they were in the richer part of town, it made sense. After removing their shoes, both maids disappeared from sight with the dirtied objects and without warning she, Deidara and their guide were doused with a large amount of water from a sudden jutsu, before a second wind jutsu effectively dried them off.

Hair mussed and not nearly as neat as she had styled it that morning, Eri frowned, but only for a moment.

“Not to worry about your shoes. Ruka and Aki will be returning those before evening tonight,” a robust, oddly friendly voice greeted their ears, and Eri turned to see a fittingly round man with thinning light brown hair, a squashed face, and dark eyes walking toward them. His clothes looked handmaid with personally embroidered designs—very expensive.

“You must be Miyamoto, un,” Deidara didn’t even bother using formal suffixes.

 Much to Eri’s surprise, after their client’s introduction, their guide began removing the mass of bandages and sheets concealing his face to reveal a surprisingly youthful boy, probably about two years younger than her, with smooth tan skin and a lively smile.

“Yes, I am,” the man returned. “And this is my adopted son, Dai,” He motioned the boy who had brought them here, who offered them a friendly wave. “Sorry for all the hush hush. Can’t exactly have anyone know I’m housing an Akatsuki, now can I?”

“I was unaware Akatsuki had acquired another female member,” Dai spoke up, to which Eri felt herself blush. He bowed and his next words only made her turn even redder. “And especially such a beautiful one.”

Without even trying to hide his displease, Deidara’s eyes narrowed and he took a step in front of Eri, one arm extended in a protective manner.

“The girl’s with me, un. She has no other relation to Akatsuki.”

“Ah, your accomplice then,”Eri did not much care for Miyamoto’s designated title, but she knew better than to speak up. “Pray tell, what happened to your other aforementioned partner? I was told to expect two Akatsuki.”

“Missed the flight, un,” Deidara said bluntly, to which Eri had to bite her lip not to laugh.

“I see,” Miyamoto nodded understandingly, but Eri guessed he honestly had no idea what Deidara was actually talking about. “Right this way, then.”

After another maid handed the three of them proper slippers for being indoors, Deidara followed after Miyamoto and she began to do the same, but Dai’s grip on her arm stopped her.

“Akatsuki members only,” he stated simply. She opened her mouth to protest, but he continued with, “Sorry. I don’t make the rules around here.”

Instead, she inquired, “Where would you like me to be then?”

Dai smiled in an oddly charming way at her. “Right this way. I’ll show you to your room.”

Dai led her through a grand display room with expensive rugs, vases, and weaponry of all sorts adorning the walls. More toward the dining area was a display cabinet with a horde of fine wines, sake bottles and an assortment of other alcohol. She knew better than to touch anything, but she nonetheless gawked in amazement. With the considerable lack of trees around here, most of the wood must have been imported. The other buildings she’d seen from the outside were made of stone.

“Not particularly used to wealth are you?” Dai finally said, breaking the silence between them.

Eri shook her head. “I’m not exactly from poverty, but I grew up in a place much smaller than this.”

“Aa.”

Silence built up once again as he continued leading her down the long immaculate hallway.

“Miyamoto-san said he adopted you. How did that happen?” Eri regretted the question the moment it left her lips, but Dai merely smiled at her.

“Sorry, if that seemed too forward,” Eri said quickly, and this time he laughed.

“It’s fine. I was a typical orphan child starving on the streets. It was hard enough not to die of heat stroke around here, let alone starvation. Miyamoto-sama found me and took me in.”

“Oh.” Not much she could say to that. It wasn’t like her life had ever been that difficult.

“What village are you from?” he countered with a question of his own. “I don’t recognize the symbol.” His eyes rested on the forehead protector around her neck. Instinctively, her fingers traced the design on the metal plate.

“Just a small independent water village,” Eri replied, hesitant to give her exact location.

“How’d a pretty thing like you end up tangled in Akatsuki?” She blinked a few times at the bluntness of his words, but recovered with a small shrug.

“Long story.” Yet another thing she didn’t particularly wish for him to know. He seemed friendly enough, but Eri knew better than to judge by appearances.

“Well, either way, we’re here.” Dai stopped outside of one of many doors with the number 2055 written on a golden plate in fancy black digits. With a small turn of the handle, he led her inside and it was everything Eri could do to keep her jaw from continuously dropping.

More expensive carpet, more vases, and more luscious decorations loaded the area, but not quite enough to look cluttered. Likely, Masumoto had the money to hire his own designer.

“I’ll be leaving you to get settled in then,” Dai said, and with a brief bow, he walked away without turning his back to her and shut the door.

She was alone in easily the most beautiful place she'd ever been in her life.

The bed was queen-sized with printed sheets and a wooden canopy overhead, once again made of expensive-looking material. The room also had its own private bathroom, shower, and toiletries, along with a couch, dresser, and walk-in closet. A few gender-neutral yukata and towels resided there along with a full length mirror and floral printed wallpaper.

Unable to resist anymore, Eri plopped onto the bed, and, unsurprisingly, it was unbelievably comfortable and the mattress gave just the right amount.

Likely, Deidara’s meeting would be long. Which meant…

Eri turned her head to eye the bathroom.

She should have just enough time to freshen up.

Grabbing a bath yukata and a towel from the closet, Eri made her way to the bathroom, and, rather than taking her typical ten minute shower, she took a full half hour long bath, complete with Epsom salts and fine oils for her skin afterwards. She was surprised the room had such things (and especially a room intended for Tobi), and admittedly it took some mental persuasion not to feel guilty in using the mass of expensive products she found lining the cabinets above and below the sink. However, the reservation did not last long.

She exited the bathroom, hair wet and body relaxed as could be. It wasn’t until she plopped down onto the bed and laid there for a few seconds that she realized she was not alone.

“You certainly seem to have adjusted quickly, un,” Deidara remarked, to which she reluctantly sat up and promptly realized she was still wearing a bathrobe and no undergarments. Eri quickly readjusted her position and gripped the opening of her yukata.

“How was the debriefing?” she inquired, changing the subject.

“Well,” much to her displease, Deidara took a seat beside her on the bed, “with the decisions he’s made, I can understand why Taki wants his head.”

“Do we have a time frame of when they should be attacking?”

“Sometime in the next two days. The time limit for the compensation money runs out tomorrow, and they said their attack would be in less than twenty-four hours, so that’s that, un.” His eyes descended a few inches lower to where her hands gripped the opening of her yukata and lingered there. Eri shifted uncomfortably. “Pretty much, you and I will just be following him around most of the day, un.”

“Won’t somebody recognize you? Akatsuki seems to be more well-known here."

“Yeah, that wouldn’t be good, given my history with the place, un.”

“History?” Eri had a feeling she didn’t want to know.

“I may or may not have kidnapped their kazekage.”

“You  _what_?!” She remembered reading something about a kidnapping at one point in a recent news article, but never had she expected to be sitting toe to toe with the perpetrator himself.

“Orders are orders.” Deidara shrugged, oddly nonchalant. “Either way, Miyamoto will be conducting all business from here, just to be safe, so we’ll just be following him from around the premise, un.”

“If he has so many servants and ninja already here, why are we here?”

“Because Akatsuki is the best of the best, un!” he declared, before adding, “Except for maybe that stupid Uchiha…” to which Eri hoped he didn’t notice her wince. “Either way, I guess his logic is that if we could defeat the kazekage, then he should be pretty safe under our protection for the next three days.”

“ _Three days_?!” Eri hadn’t heard much aside from that.

“Yeah, so, un?”

“I’m supposed to meet Kaname tomorrow for training with Kaede-sensei! What’s she going to think when I’m not there tomorrow? Or what about my parents? They’ll be worried sick!”

In the midst of it all, she’d forgotten it was Thursday and that she still had class for another day before the weekend. Stupid, stupid…

Unphased by it all, Deidara said, “I’ll just let Tobi know. He should at least be competent enough to perform a transformation jutsu to fool your friends and family into thinking you’re sick or something.”

“Does he even know where I live?” Honestly, she would be more worried if Deidara or Tobi did know the answer to that.

“Let’s find out shall we?” Deidara twisted the blue ring on his finger and formed a hand sign. His chakra surged and, within seconds, he seemed to be doing something along the lines of telepathy, but chose to speak out loud.

“Tobi! Deidara barked, and because Deidara motioned for her to touch ring as well and follow his hand sign, she heard the grating reply of, “Senpai? Is that you?”

He acted surprisingly un-upset for being left behind. Did this happen often?

“Eri’s not going to be back for a few days. We need you to fool her family into thinking she’s sick and can’t come out of her room,” Deidara informed, not even giving his partner time to protest. “Got it?”

“Hai, Senpai!”

“If you keep going straight down the path from Akira’s house, you’ll reach a turn which leads to Kaname and my houses,” Eri added, slightly hesitant toward the beginning as she did not know exactly how the jutsu worked. “And be careful!”

“Hai, Eri-san! I won’t let you down!”

And with that, Deidara withdrew the hand sign and ended the jutsu.

“See? Problem solved, un.”

It wasn’t so much the weekend that she was worried about, as it was her, or rather Tobi’s, interaction with Kaname tomorrow. Did Tobi know a thing about how she normally acted around others? The idea of leaving her parents and friends in Tobi’s hands was most certainly not an idea she much cared for.

“Guess there’s not much I can do about it now,” she admitted. And it was true.

“Well, guess you’ve got the right idea with the shower thing,” Deidara grinned.

“Don’t you have your own room?” Eri frowned, but attempted to sound as polite as possible.

“Probably. Makes it more interesting this way though, doesn’t it?”

Politeness gone, Eri stood up from the bed and moved herself to the couch without another word. Yet another thing she couldn’t do much about.

-

Obito sighed to himself as he walked around the premise of Akira’s former home. What irony it was that they had landed in this predicament.

Of course, Deidara had become momentarily enamored with Akira’s friend and chosen to take her with him instead of his designated partner. It did not surprise him in the slightest, however Obito wondered if she would have the strength needed to complete the mission she’d agreed to go on so blindly. It was understandable, though. If he lived in a dump village like this, he would be vying for the first chance to leave, too.

In the least, he had the house to himself, which meant he wouldn’t have to act. As for the one named Kaname, who he had seen a few times while spying on Eri just to make sure she didn’t break her end of the deal, he felt confident that she and the dark-haired girl’s parents would be easy to fool. Still, he couldn’t do too good of a job. He needed Deidara to still think Obito was the fool he pretended to be, and, although she was not nearly as experienced as most of them in the ninja world, Eri was more perceptive than most gave her credit and he had to keep that in mind.

Although, one downside would be that he’d have to make himself dinner now. It had been a long time since he’d had anyone cook for him like Eri did. Cooking was one of the few things these Whirlpool kunoichi did right.

-

Eri awoke the next morning more comfortable than she ever remembered. There was no alarm, just a gentle voice in the back of her head saying it was time to wake up. Then she felt someone breathing on her and her eyes shot open.

Deidara’s face lay centimeters away from hers, and, in a matter of seconds, everything came rushing back to her. She’d fallen asleep last night while Deidara had been in the shower and, by the looks of it, he’d joined her on the bed.

She frowned initially when she noticed Deidara’s arm draped around her, but her expression quickly changed upon observing the tanned skin of his left arm, which, with his uniform off, she found had once been detached and then sewn back on. Without moving more than an inch, she examined what could be seen of his other arm.

The same thing had happened, just in a different area.

_Itachi-san has his scars and the ANBU tattoo, and Deidara has this?_ It amazed her what these men dealt with so regularly. Deidara seemed foreign enough to the concept of having family and friends that she almost felt bad for him. As much as he annoyed him, Tobi was the closest thing Deidara had to consistency.

On that thought, she quickly reminded herself of what this ninja and his seemingly idiot partner had taken away from her: her friend, her confidence and, at present, her conscience.

With that, she removed Deidara’s arm from her midsection and went to change out of the bath yukata, replacing the robe with her clothes from yesterday. Deidara began to stir, but, by the time he fully awoke, Eri was already in the bathroom changing.

Clearly, Deidara did not possess the same moral code that Itachi did. Deidara did what he wanted when he wanted. He wasn’t reserved, and, judging by the way he talked and the stories she’d heard from Tobi, he loved to blow things up and wasn’t afraid to ditch someone he was supposed to trust, like his partner, to do so. Regardless, he had this odd… charm about him. He wasn't reserved like Itachi or kind like Dai, but, despite all he’d unwittingly put her through, Eri had to admit that, in his own way, Deidara was attractive.

Eri stopped herself there as she splashed cold water from the sink onto her face and then dabbed off the moisture with one of the delightfully fluffy towels.

Through some miracle, by the time she walked back out to the room, Deidara was already dressed and ready to go, save for a few tangles in his long blonde hair that he was attempting to disperse with his fingers.

“You know there are brushes in the nightstand, right?”

“Yeah, I just prefer to do things this way,” he said, probably in an effort not to look stupid. “Gives it a more natural look.”

Eri said nothing, shaking her head as she reattached the weapons pouch to the belt loop just below her sash. Both their ninja shoes had been returned early that morning. Somehow, the servants had figured out Deidara’s choice to stay with her instead of his assigned room.

The day commenced when a maid knocked on their door, telling them that Miyamoto expected them for breakfast, and, with both of them dressed ready for the day, the duo followed her down the fancy winding staircase.

Like everything else, breakfast was decadent and exotically delicious. After that, she and Deidara spent the entire day following their client around. Dai popped in from time to time, and, at some point Eri noticed him training in the courtyard with some of the other male servants. Part of her wondered what had happened with morning with Tobi and Kaname, but, given the task at hand, she tried not to pay too much attention to the idea.

The day dragged, if anything. Save for her brief seconds of watching Dai train, there had been little to see. Not much happened. No one attempted to invade the premise, and not even a servant that she knew of cut their finger so that she could heal it.

Deidara made no effort to hide his boredom, but Miyamoto didn’t seem to care. By the second day, he seemed visibly more relaxed, but, on the third and final day of their stay here, all hell broke loose.

Miyamoto had been taking a leisurely stroll through the courtyard of his villa. Deidara was concealing a yawn at the lack of movement, and some of the servants surrounding them were pruning the area. Then, out of all that were watching, a hint of a chakra presence flickered to life on Eri’s radar just as a flash of silver caught her eye.

“Miyamoto-san!” The man turned, but too slowly. Out of options and ideas, Eri drew a kunai, alarming all around her as she threw it at the man. All was explained as it clashed with the metal of what she had just seen.

In what looked like an attack that blacked out the sun, more weapons began to whiz through the air. The servant to her left was the first to fall, and by now Eri was in front of their client, defending what she could. A kunai nicked her cheek and a shuriken embedded itself in her arm, but save for that and a few surrounding servants, Miyamoto was fine and no one else was hurt. Eri spotted Dai rushing toward them out of the corner of her eye.

“Take him somewhere safe!” Eri yelled amid all the noise, to which Dai nodded and, under Eri’s cover, began to lead his adopted father away somewhere Eri was glad she did not know.

In the least, Deidara seemed to be having fun. A resounding  _boom_ shook the area as his first clay creation exploded. Two Taki nins were sent flying, but only one of them seemed injured enough to be dead or incapacitated.

Eri sensed the heat of a fire jutsu coming her way, and she jumped up in the air just in time to dodge. By now, most of the servants had cleared the area and several of the enemy had already entered the house in an attempt to find their target. She would have to leave them to Dai for the time being, given the majority had remained out here to fight what they believed to be the main threat, which was her and Deidara.

The first people Eri faced were a man a woman, both dressed in entirely dark outfits with Taki style ANBU masks and typical gray flak jackets. The man had been the one to direct the fire jutsu at her and the woman was already performing hand signs for another jutsu, which seemed to give her some sort of chakra power up. Knowing she would have to think fast, Eri did the same and formed several mizubunshin.

Her elements were wind and water, but her skill level was nowhere near that of an ANBU. Eri tried not to think too hard about how she would make it out of here alive. Wind jutsu would only make the fire grow, but if that happened again, she always had a few water jutsu up her sleeve that could be useful.

She exchanged blows with the woman first, mostly on the offensive until the man decided to join in, and Eri was forced to escalate. The woman she fought had shoulder length mousy-colored hair, which, although not long, was long enough to grab, which she did.

The woman attempted to break her grip with a kunai, but only for Eri’s figure to melt into a puddle of water while the real her, along with two other clones, went for the man, who seemed like the weaker of the two. Once he was out of the way, it would be easier to focus her attention fully on the woman.

Two more Taki ninja fell prey to Deidara’s art, and by now the former Iwa nin soared above the rooftops atop the giant clay bird she was secretly growing accustomed to. Just as the clay nin dropped his next bomb, Eri had an idea, but she would require this unreliable blonde for it to work.

Taking a chance, Eri detached the sash around her waist as she dodged yet another hit from the woman. Using the cloth as a form of distraction, she managed to divert the man’s attention just long enough for her to punch his squarely in the face, knocking him backward as she followed through with a rear kick to the woman, who was smart enough to bring up her hands to block. Regardless, the force of the hit still knocked her back.

Eri readjusted her grip on the sash and waved it through the air in an attempt to get Deidara’s attention while her opponents recovered. He veered toward her, but she couldn’t quite ensure that they’d made eye contact.

The man and the woman were closing in on her, likely not caring why Eri chose to stand still at the moment. One of her clones dispersed en route, and the other she used as a step ladder to jump into the air just as Deidara passed overhead, forcing her opponents to pull back so as not to injure each other.

Deidara caught the cloth of her sash in one hand while she danged from the other end, and, in an impressive effort of strength, he pulled her onto the bird with him.

“Kami, kunoichi, could you have been any more subtle, un?!”

“I have an idea!” Eri declared, ignoring his outburst. Readjusting her grip on the sash, she gave him a cocky smile, which felt odd on her lips. “Just follow my lead.”

Before he could protest, Eri threw a spray of kunai at another trio of opponents closing in on them. With their enemies combined, there were five people left to kill or incapacitate.

Against her better judgement, Eri stood up against the air current, anchoring herself on the bird through chakra in her feet, and began forming the hand signs for her ice dagger jutsu. There wasn’t much moisture for her to pull out of the air for the jutsu, but she had enough chakra to convert into water.

Deidara whistled his approval as two of their opponents were stabbed clean through in what Eri ensured were vital areas. One of them had been the man she’d fought from earlier.

“Not bad, kunoichi.”

“Don’t get too excited!” After ensuring Deidara still had a grip on the sash she'd thrown him, Eri cast aside all fear of heights and jumped from the creature to block an impending blow from another woman. This woman was a lightning user, and the most Eri could do against that was avoid being hit.

“Oi, don’t move around too much, un!” Deidara yelled as he struggled to maintain his position on the bird. “Don’t really feel much like losing an arm again, un!”

Eri paid him no heed and blocked another strike from a different ANBU. By now, they were flying above the rooftop of Miyamoto’s villa, and the courtyard was out of sight. Deidara tossed another explosive from his positive above her, and this one landed on the face of another pursuing ninja. It detonated, bringing their enemies’ numbers down to three.

After raising the bird just a bit higher into the air, Deidara ensured their safety by bringing them out of range for the lightning user, at least for the time being.

“I have an especially beautiful piece saved for the survivors,” Deidara cackled as Eri climbed her way back onto to the bird with him. Deidara was feeding bits of clay to the mouths on his hands while she panted from her recent skirmish. “Just stay out of the way this time.”

Deidara formed a hand sign and dozens of what looked like tiny clay spiders began to drop like deadly over-sized snowflakes. They detonated, and Eri observed two subsequent screams and a surge of lightning. By the time the dust cleared, the lightning user was still standing. Given earth was weak against lightening, it made sense.

“One to go.” Eri took out another kunai. This opponent was hers.

Not even bothering to fasten herself this time, Eri jumped off the bird, now completely free falling.

The lightning user from earlier steadied herself, and using the guise of kunai as a cover, Eri began forming hand signs for a new jutsu.

“Water phoenix jutsu!” Eri yelled, and with all the chakra she had left, a giant wave of water in the shape of a bird formed and engulfed the woman below her, both cushioning her fall and trapping her opponent.

Eri released the jutsu just as she regained her footing, and, nearly out of chakra, she trudged over to the woman. Her ANBU mask was cracked and blood dripped from her forehead. Although Eri couldn't quite see her mouth, she could hear her choking and sputtering from the unexpected water intake.

“Finish it,” she seemed to say. Her eyes screamed the same message. “You call yourself a ninja, so finish the job!”

Her hands felt heavy. Whether it was from hesitation or chakra exhaustion, Eri didn’t know, but either way, she waited for just a split second.

A small tan object landed on the woman’s forehead, and both of them looked up to see Deidara form a hand sign above her.

“Katsu!”

The final spider detonated, and that was that. The choice hadn’t been hers to make.

Kunai still in hand, Eri collapsed. She expected to feel the cold hard surface of concrete and likely taste additional blood in her mouth, but none of that came. Instead, Deidara arrived just in time to catch her.

“Miyamoto… san…” Eri mouthed, barely able to keep her eyes open.

“The old coot’ll be fine, un,” Deidara muttered, seemingly annoyed that she’d chosen their client's name of all things to murmur. “Just regain your strength already. You’re no good to us passed out.”

Forming a brief hand sign, Eri focused her chakra, using every once sensor ability she had to see if any enemies still existed. She couldn’t sense Miyamoto-san, but Dai was on the third floor. Judging by the lack of tension she felt in his presence, he and the other servants had taken care of whoever was in the house.

It was over.

A little less begrudgingly this time, Eri used Deidara as her support as she wobbled back to her feet. It made her feel a bit better, though, that he was bleeding, too. After a brief respite, she could stand again. But now she had to tend to the wounded…

Five of the servants had been killed and, not including them, fifteen servants were injured, seven of which were critical. Being the only experienced medic nin, Eri set up a makeshift emergency room in the middle of the parlor and, surprising most everyone who had initially seen her as soft-spoken, began barking orders for treatments and medical supplies.

As she worked, one of the maids named Ruka came forward, claiming she possessed some prior medical training and was able to help her a bit more extensively than most of the others.

At the moment, Eri was attempting to close a bleeding wound from a katana on a young male’s stomach. Ruka offered some of her chakra as help, but after the day’s events, sweat dripped from Eri’s brow. Others with more minor injuries gathered around, watching her, and the pressure was on.

The dark-haired kunoichi breathed a sigh of relief when the wound finally closed. Within minutes, the rest of the man’s wounds were cleaned and bandaged. Better yet, the rest of her patients' lives were not in danger.

The minutes blurred as she bandaged wound after wound. Then, just as she tied off the last scratch on some poor girl’s forearm and readjusted the gauze on another’s forehead, she felt a friendly hand on her shoulder—far too friendly to be Deidara.

“Great job back there.” It was Dai. “Really, we couldn’t have done that without you. I heard what happened from the other servants.”

Eri smiled weakly, still trying to maintain a professional air. “I’m grateful everyone here was able to defend Miyamoto-san.”

“So modest.” Dai shook his head in disbelief. “I ask again, what are you doing with the Akatsuki?” His dark green eyes twinkled genuinely.

“I should go check on Miyamoto-san,” Eri said quickly, trying to be subtle as she removed the boy’s hand from her shoulder. “Let me know if anyone else needs treatment.”

For a moment, she almost forgot about Deidara’s promise to tell her about Akira. When she’d agreed to house him and Tobi, she had not expected this kind of adventure. Was this what Akira dealt with at Akatsuki? This excitement?

Refusing to admit that Akira could possibly be enjoying herself in any way, Eri moved away and left to find Miyamoto, who was talking with Deidara.

“Ah, just the person I was looking for!” Miyamoto declared, surprisingly chipper for a man whose life had just been endangered.

“Is there something I missed, Deidara-san?” she added the title to the clay nin's name simply because Miyamoto was listening.

“He was just saying how grateful he is that I brought a healer instead of my other partner, un,” Deidara said blandly. “He was asking me if he could keep you.”

Eri’s blood ran cold.

_Keep… me?_ she thought incredulously.

“Well, Dai has taken quite a liking to you,” Miyamoto began, to which Eri blushed and Deidara visibly scowled. “Not to mention, we could use an experienced healer around here who also possesses your level of fighting skills.”

The offer was tempting. But did she really belong here?

“The choice is yours, Eri-san.”

Everything here was beautiful. The people here liked and appreciated her. She wasn’t just some quiet nobody like she was back at home. Sure it was deathly hot temperature-wise, which would kill her pale complexion, but was that really such a big price to pay compared to all that Suna had to offer?

Suna was much bigger than her tiny Whirlpool Village. More people, more to do, and far more to offer, and, as much as it unnerved her to admit it, Dai was not shy about his affection for her. He was sweet and he was attractive, but he was so young. Too young.

Dai had repeatedly asked what someone like her was doing with Akatsuki, but the better question seemed to be what a household like this in such a beautiful place, desert aside, was doing with Akatsuki.

Not knowing what else to do, Eri dipped her head in a deep bow.

“Thank you for your generous offer, Miyamoto-san,” Eri said before rising. “But I have responsibilities to complete that I have already committed to.” Her training. Akira. Kaname. Her parents—she couldn’t just leave them, no matter how much she wanted out of the Whirlpool Village.

Miyamoto looked surprised, but not hurt or offended like she had feared.

“Dai will be disappointed,” was the first thing that he said, but after that, he chuckled a deep belly laugh. “Akatsuki is fortunate to have such skill.”

Deidara’s frown turned into a raised eyebrow, but, other than that, he said nothing.

“Please, at least stay for the night. I would not want you travelling back to your country in such a condition,” Miyamoto said.

“As you wish,” Eri replied dutifully, and much to her surprise, Deidara didn’t argue. Apparently, he didn’t mind spending another night in luxury.

Dai didn’t say another word to her the entire night, and when she and Deidara retired to “their” room after dinner, she had little energy to argue over sleeping arrangements, especially after such a big meal. Everyone mourned the five servants who had died, but as sad as they were for their fallen comrades, they were grateful to have not joined them.

Eri and Deidara left the next morning with the gratitude of the villa.

“If you ever change you mind, Eri-san, you will always have a place here,” Miyamoto stated, only flattering her further.

“Thank you.”And again she bowed. By the time she looked up, Dai looked at her with piercing green eyes. Then he spoke to her again for the first time since their encounter yesterday.

“Are you sure you won’t stay?” he finally said, to which Deidara visibly twitched.

“No means, no, dipshit, un!” Deidara snapped, but Eri quickly quieted the hot tempered male and turned to face the younger.

“My home is elsewhere,” she said simply, but before she could react further, the boy stepped forward and kissed her cheek, earning several oohs and ahs from onlooking servants.

Her hand lingered from where the boy’s lips had just been. Her face burned red.

“Be safe.” And those were Dai’s final words to her. As she and Deidara walked outside, this time it was the blonde who gave her the silent treatment.

He activated the jutsu for his clay bird, and, albeit more begrudgingly than before, offered a hand to help her on. Some of the servants and especially Dai had walked outside after them to watch Deidara and her take off.

Eri secured her arms around the blonde’s midsection, determined not get sick this time. Deidara formed his usual hand sign, Eri felt a surge of chakra and wind, and they were off, careful to fly high enough over the clouds so that Suna officials would not detect them.

Ten minutes in, she was the first to break the silence.

“What are kind people like that doing with a criminal organization?”

Deidara glanced back at her, eyebrow raised.

“Are you sure they’re such good people as you think, un?”

“They were good to us.”

“Maybe they’re good at putting on a show. Most shinobi in a political situation like that have to be.”

“Or maybe bad people aren’t all that they seem,” Eri murmured. Deidara turned his attention back to the sky ahead of them. A pregnant pause filled the air before he spoke again.

“Why did you say no, un?” It was quiet, and it was subtle, but even over the wind currents, she’d heard him.

“I told you. My home is in the Whirlpool Village.”

“Get real. You hate it there, un,” Deidara retorted. “You literally jumped at the first opportunity you had to get out of there.”

“My family is there.”

“Uh-huh.”

“And my sensei.”

“Hm.”

She hesitated before her next answer.

“And it’s Akira’s home.” Her words were quiet, but Deidara’s reply was even more so.

“Not any more.” His words sent a pang through Eri’s chest. She knew better than to listen to him, but still…

Something told her he was right.

They flew the rest of the way in silence, and, by the time either of them spoke again, they were landing at Akira’s house.

_Well, that was fun,_  Eri thought, shaking her head in disbelief at the memory as she examined the tattered sash hanging from her hips. Miyamoto had tried to offer her new clothes, but she’d insisted on keeping what she had. They’d been hospitable to her enough as it was.

Never in a million years could she have ever imagined an adventure like that, especially here.

Tobi’s chakra was inside Akira’s house somewhere near the study. In the least, he wasn’t wondering aimlessly out back.

“We’re back,” Eri called as she and Deidara reentered the house. She was greeted with a surprise bone-crushing hug from the orange-masked one.

“Eri-san! Senpai! Tobi was so worried!” By the time he released the dark-haired kunoichi, her already sore shoulders only ached more.

“We’re fine, Tobi,”Eri assured, ignoring the pain as she bent down to remove her shoes. “Just ready for a break.”

“Looks like we’re not getting it, un,” Deidara stated, to which Eri gave him a quizzical look. “Your friend is on her way.”

“Kaname?!”

-

The copper-haired kunoichi made her way down the path to Akira's house, which she had not taken in quite some time. Eri could see the hesitation in her footsteps as she peered from the edge of the window. Of course, Kaname had picked now of all times to get confrontational. Her friend had known for quite some time that Eri still visited Akira's old home.

“Come on, Eri, I know you’re in there!” Kaname said, knocking twice on the door before gripping the handle. “I’m coming in!”

_“Hide!”_  Eri mouthed, and Deidara and Tobi quickly scurried to obey.

As soon as the door flew open, Eri was left alone and stupidly standing in the middle of the room, all of Kaname’s energy directed toward her.

“What are you doing here?” the copper-haired kunoichi demanded, and Eri sheepishly turned to face her. “Were you even sick this past Friday? You’ve been acting so strange lately!”

A combination of exhaustion and honest guilt mingled in Eri’s brain, keeping her from one of her usual coherent replies.  _Come on, Eri, think!_ She tried to reason. There had to be a way out of this. She was so close! She couldn’t come clean with Kaname yet.

“Well?” her friend was getting impatient by now, and, not knowing what else to do, Eri stifled a sob and before Kaname could so much as yelp, the dark-haired kunoichi dropped to the ground in an exhausted crying mess and Kaname, thinking it was purely sadness, rushed to hug her.

Her words were simple, but she wasn’t lying.

“I miss Akira.”

-

With a tissue in hand, Eri bid Kaname goodbye. She insisted that she required time alone to process, and, as soon as Kaname’s chakra was well out of sensing distance, Eri breathed a sigh of relief.

“You can come out now!” she called, and with an unceremonious thump, Deidara dropped from the ceiling he’d previously been sticking to.

“I thought she’d never leave, un!”

“Where’s Tobi?” Eri inquired, glancing around the room.

“Who the hell cares? Probably ran off scared, un.”

Shaking her head, Eri let out another sigh.  _What a day._

“Nice acting, by the way. Making up all that about missing Akira,” Deidara remarked.

“That wasn’t acting.” Her words silenced him, but he didn’t look guilty. More exhausted than anything.

“I need a drink,” the clay nin muttered, heading to the kitchen.

“There are cups in the cupboard and I can boil water if you want tea,” Eri offered.

“Not that kind. Something stronger.”

“Akira doesn’t drink, so she’s not going to have any alcohol here.” Eri frowned, but Deidara smirked at her.

“Lucky for us I do, un.” And with that, Deidara took out the same storage scroll he’d previously used for his Akatsuki hat and repeated the same ritual with biting his thumb before a puff of smoke filled the room.

When it cleared, an array of brightly decorated, expensive-looking sake bottles filled the area.

“Deidara!” She knew those bottles. “Those are Miyamoto-san’s!” She remembered them from the display case in the guest parlor.

“Oh, come on, it’s not like he can’t afford new ones, un.”

Eri vehemently shook her head as Deidara brought out a pair of wine cups to go with the sake.

“And you need two of those why? Do you plan on getting your hands drunk, too, while you’re at it?”

“Not quite.” Deidara smirked. She didn’t like it one bit.

“What then?”

“This one’s for you,” he said simply, situating himself on the floor behind Akira’s dining room table.

“I don’t drink.”

“That can change. Come on, just one.”

Ignoring every voice in her head telling her not to, which as of late, she was becoming quite adept at doing, Eri took a seat beside the clay nin. It felt wrong to be doing this at Akira’s table, let alone in her house, but she had little time to think with Deidara shoving a wine cup full of sake in her face.

The clay nin already stank of the burning substance, and, after the week she’d had, Eri was ready for something to turn off her brain.

She could see herself reflected in the translucent liquid and, after a deep breath to dull her senses, Eri gulped it down. Her throat burned and her noses tickled, causing her to blink several times as she adjusted to the feeling, but she didn’t choke.

Deidara’s smirk deepened. “Not bad, huh?”

Eri finished with a cough, her face flushed. “Horrendous!”

Deidara raised an eyebrow. Eri waited another moment.

_But with a pleasant buzz, afterwards…_

“Just a bit more, if you please,” she added meekly, to which Deidara laughed.

After the third or fourth cup, Eri lost track of what was going on around her. Sure, she knew she was at Akira’s and she knew Deidara was here with her, but all mental reserves that made her the sweet, soft-spoken person she typically was diluted with each additional mouthful.

Judging by the color in his cheeks, Deidara was beginning to feel the effects, as well.

“I still can’t believe you let that little brat kiss you!” Deidara slurred, spilling droplets of sake on the table as he poured their next shots. “What’s he got that I don’t… un!”

“It doesn’t count as a first kiss if it’s on the cheek,” Eri retorted, more heatedly than he’d ever heard her talk before. “It was sweet… kind of innocent, really.”

“That was your first kiss?!” The slur in Deidara’s voice was gone, and for a moment she looked at him with drunken questioning. “Really?!”

“I just finished telling you it didn’t count, right?”

“I can do better than that little prick!”

“As if you would,” Eri muttered, laying her head down on her outstretched arm while her other side that wasn’t cradling her head gripped the sloshing cup. “You just want me here to babysit Tobi.”

She was definitely intoxicated. Her sober self would have never actually said such a harsh statement.

“Not true, un!” Deidara argued, but she didn’t bother looking up to acknowledge she heard him. “It’s not every day you meet an-*hick*-attractive girl you can convince to let you stay with her.”

“I’m sure you have  _all_  the luck with the ladies,” Eri muttered, pouring herself another. What was that now, her fifth? Her sixth? “Withoutblackmailing them.”

“Not a much as you’d think. Especially with the job.”

“Whatever.” It wasn’t her business, and it wasn’t like she could think straight enough to care right now, anyway.

She’d heard it said that people became more attractive when the observer was intoxicated, but Deidara still seemed like Deidara. The alcohol was just making them more honest with each other.

“I could still do better than that little prick,” he muttered, and by now Eri figured he was just delirious. Deidara, sake bottle inches from his hand, stumbled from his sitting position at the table and fell face first into the hardwood floor before crawling a few more inches to her lap.

She didn’t quite know how to explain what happened next. The last thing she remembered was Deidara’s messy blonde head falling onto her folded legs, and the next moment she felt something warm and wet on her mouth.

It took a second before she realized he was kissing her.

Everything in her logical mind knew this was wrong. Even after their mission, this was too much. He’d kidnapped Akira! He’d taken her friend! He’d…

Whatever coherent thought had been trying to string itself together in Eri’s head dissipated the second she felt an additional slimy object pass her lips. She wasn’t entirely sure what she was supposed to do, but she did what felt natural to her, and that was to kiss him back in the same way.

From there, Eri wasn’t entirely sure what happened next, but she remembered running her fingers through Deidara’s hair and pulling him closer, only pausing for either of them to catch their breath. Midway between one of the aforementioned respites, she downed another shot of sake and continued as per usual, this time tackling the clay nin to the ground.

Not one for being topped, Deidara gripped her hips and rose just enough off the ground for Eri to wrap her legs around his midsections before he switched their positions.

The healer’s hands traced the scars and stitches on the clay nin’s arms and chest as he momentarily held her in place only to crash their bodies onto Akira’s table, knocking over sake bottles and cups alike. By now, she found all the the strange little markings, and especially the one on his chest, oddly endearing and, even if she hadn’t, she was too drunk to care.

Even so, she wasn’t about to lose her virginity on a table where she’d eaten and countless times with her teammates and, even drunk, intended to do so again.

“Deidara… ah…” Eri trailed off as the clay nin moved from her mouth to the side of her neck, which he had just discovered was a might bit ticklish. “Could we… aah, not do it here?”

His hands groped the dark-haired girl’s breasts, an asset of hers which Eri had always secretly prided herself in being bigger than Akira or Kaname, and the mouth on the right side bit down ever so slightly, causing her to squirm before Deidara finally replied.

“Hn.” She thought better than to tell him how much like Itachi he sounded when he said that. Not that she was thinking about that Uchiha in the slightest. Her attention was focused fully on the blonde clay nin.

More gently than she could have thought possible, Deidara lifted her off the table the two of them stumbled their way down the hallway toward Akira’s bedroom where Deidara stayed. Somewhere along the lines, Eri felt her back being slammed against the wall of hallway, but even if she broke something, at this point, she didn’t really care.

-

Obito didn’t have to enter far into the house to recognize the unmistakable stench of sake in the air. Deidara had been drinking, and, judging by the fact both of their chakras now resided in the bedroom, so had Eri. Deidara had successfully corrupted her. He should feel proud.

Secretly thankful he’d missed the evening’s activities, Tobi made his way into the kitchen to find some semblance of dinner. Judging by the number of sake bottles he found strewn across the dining room, he didn’t have to worry about either of them waking until much later.

_In the least, the alone time has been nice._ It had given him some extra time to converse with Pein and Konan regarding his plans. There were some minor draw backs occurring such as the Konoha nins who were certainly proving more troublesome than anticipated, especially the nine tails jinchuriki and his obsessive pursuit of Itachi’s younger brother, but, with time, Obito knew all would fall into place.

He just needed to be patient.

-

Eri awoke the next morning, her head pounding. Murmuring her discontent, she rolled from one side to the other and felt an odd chill when she removed her arm from beneath the covers.

Headache now transforming into a small migraine, Eri made a mental note to take some pain medication before remembering she was hung over. Her chocolate eyes squinted to find her legs and torso entangled in a web of white and blue sheets.

She was in Akira’s room. The comforter that had once covered the bed’s surface was now haphazardly thrown to the floor. But where was Deidara?

Eyes now fully shot open, Eri sat up, the thin sheets pooling around her waist and the cold air causing goose flesh on her skin.

Deidara’s presence was nowhere to be found. Or Tobi’s. So either they were both simultaneously hiding their chakra, or…

“Dammit!” Eri seethed and she threw aside the sheets to begin the mad search for her clothes. She needed to hurry.

Not even caring if her hair looked like a mess, Eri poured healing chakra into her splitting headache as she ran. How low… even for criminals!

She ran. With everything in her, she ran long and hard, never before feeling so thankful that their village was small.  At last, she felt two familiar presences.  Anger renewed, she quickened the pace. They were not getting away.

Panting wildly, Eri could just barely make out the image of a golden blonde and an orange and black blob. With all the energy left in her body, she cupped her hands and screamed.

“DEIDARA! YOU LYING SON OF A BITCH!”

As she’d hoped, the blonde blob in the familiar woven hat momentarily stopped and turned, giving her the extra time she needed to catch up. She made it. She was physically and mentally spent, but she’d made it.

“You… *pant* stupid liar… *pant*…” she managed, hands on her knees. Deidara gave her an irritatingly quizzical look and Tobi stood back to watch the show.

“You promised you’d tell me about Akira! About what happened to her!” Eri finally managed. “We had a deal!”

Deidara reached out to cup her chin, and, against her better judgment, she let him, but glared daggers.

“We have to get back to Akatsuki,”he said simply.

“We. Had. A. Deal,” she seethed, fists clenched.

“I already told you. Akira’s fine, Eri.”

And before Eri could demand an elaboration, Deidara closed the distance between them and captured her mouth in a kiss. It wasn’t anything deep or even overly sensual. Just a light pressure and the same wet feeling she’d gotten when he’d kissed her for the first time.

The kiss ended far more quickly than she would have liked, but Eri knew better than to initiate anything else, especially with Tobi around. Honestly, she was far too dumbfounded to do anything except stand there.

“See you later.” With that small, almost mockingly friendly gesture, Deidara replaced the woven hat on his head and turned back to his partner. “Let’s go, Tobi.”

All Eri could do is watch as they moved farther and farther into the distance. The crisp winter air caused her to shiver, but Eri didn’t care.

Her ears were deaf to Tobi’s childish taunts of “Deidara’s got a girlfriend!” over and over again as the out of sight clay nin blushed and repeatedly told his partner to “Shut up, un!”

In the span of the last three days, she’d never felt so alive, and now everything was gone and she was left feeling emptier than when she’d first begun.

Eri’s mind slowly transitioned back to reality where she sat in the cabin, alone. It wasn’t fair. Then again, as Akira had discovered long before her, life never was.

But, just as she finished emptying her unfinished breakfast into the trashcan and washed the dishes, which she'd become quite adept at balancing on her pregnant belly, something flickered to life on her radar. Thankfully, she hadn’t been holding any dishes; otherwise, she would have dropped them.


	30. Chapter 30

"Eri." The door creaked open, and the dark-haired girl did not have to look up to know who had found her. She knew those chakra well.

The voice was Akira's and Kaname was right behind her. Exhaling in an attempt to calm herself, Eri turned to face them. There was no hiding it now—her belly protruded for all to see.

Kaname's emerald eyes widened and her jaw dropped, although, much to Eri's surprise, save for uttering her name, Akira had no expression.

Eri locked eyes with Hyuuga girl. Honestly, she had no idea what to say, so she did what she usually did at times like these—she remained silent and waited for someone else to speak.

Nothing could have ever prepared her for what they did next. Akira acted first and took a step toward her. Instinctively, Eri closed her eyes, expecting pain. But all she felt was warmth as Akira embraced her. Looking uncertain, Kaname followed the Hyuuga girl's lead.

"Let's go home, Eri," Akira said softly.

Unable to hold herself back any longer, Eri allowed the tears to spill and wept silently in her friends' arms.

By the time she calmed down, Eri did not even want to think about how much time had passed. Nonetheless, Akira calmly sat her down at the table while Kaname pulled up two chairs for them to join her. Nearly a box of tissues later, Eri was ready to speak.

"So… this is why you left?" None of them said it outright, but Eri nodded slowly. She had expected them to ask the next question far sooner. "Whose is it?"

"Deidara's." Kaname looked confused, but Akira gave a brief "Ah" of understanding.

"Wait, Deidara, isn't that—?"

"The man who kidnapped me, yes," Akira finished, but much to Eri's surprise, her friend realized there was more to the story. "I've been missing for a year, and you can't be more than six months along. They came back, didn't they?"

"Yes." Kaname's eyes widened in alarm, and Eri quickly added, "I'm sorry I hid it from you, Kaname. I didn't know what to do."

"So did he—?"

"It was consensual," Eri clarified. "I just… I was stupid."

Kaname and Eri listened to the tale of Eri's unexpected encounter with Deidara and Tobi, along with the pain of hiding and the promised information should she do as they asked. Then there was Deidara's odd charm and the showing off and the final straw of taking her along for the initially chagrined bodyguard mission, which began with a thrilling soar through the sky. The rest was a sake-induced night of passion and a lonely morning after.

"And three months later, I discovered I was pregnant," Eri finished. "I'm an only child, and not just that, the only shinobi in the family. I didn't want to disappoint to my parents, and I couldn't bring myself to admit I'd allowed Akira's kidnapper to do those things to me. It was far easier to disappear, and what better place than the cabin we played at as kids?"

They'd found this place all on their own while wandering through the woods one weekend. It was a rickety-looking, seemingly-abandoned residence, perfect to serve as a hideout for the adolescent trio. The wooden building was fairly well-hidden amid the foliage and located deep in the forest between villages, which made finding supplies somewhat easy. Also, being situated near a river, the premise was somehow connected in a way to enable running water. Kaname and Eri had never told their parents about it, and Akira didn't have parents to tell, so it had gone undiscovered. It had been so long since they'd visited that it didn't surprise her Kaname hadn't thought to look here.

In retrospect, Eri hadn't taken Tobi and Deidara here because she'd wanted to keep a closer eye on them, and it would have been too difficult for her to constantly travel back and forth between her house and this location. At least at Akira's house, she could sense their chakra from the village if she concentrated deeply, and it was overall a nicer residence.

"But your parents have been worried sick about you!" Kaname argued. "You really think one child out of wedlock is going to make them hate you?"

"With the father being an S ranked criminal?"

Akira laughed softly. "Guess that makes two of us."

Kaname blanched. Eri looked at her curiously.

"What?" Kaname blurted.

"I've already told Kaname, but I suppose it's time for me to tell you as well, Eri," Akira began, her tone sheepish. "As you know, Deidara and Tobi are both from Akatsuki, however, so was Itachi."

"Uchiha Itachi?" Eri blinked several times as the information registered. "That certainly explains a few things." The mysterious former leaf ANBU who donned no forehead protector… especially considering Deidara's reaction to the picture in Akira's bedroom. "So then you two…?"

"Yep."

"More than once—?"

"Lost count," Akira finished, blushing slightly. Kaname snorted to hold back a laugh. "I didn't find out until this week, though. I don't know how far along I am."

"How did he take it? Is that why you're back here?"

Akira's face fell, and Eri knew she would not like the Hyuuga girl's answer.

"Well…" Akira's voice cracked. She was holding back tears. "Itachi's dead. He died before I could tell him."

Eri covered her mouth with her hand, and Kaname looked away, not wanting to see her friends cry any longer. Akira continued.

"He wasn't evil. Just… used. Itachi was branded an S ranked criminal because he took the fall for something his village ordered."

"The Uchiha massacre," Eri realized. She possessed a memory for village histories, but the two stories had never quite clicked. "That was  _him_?!"

"His clan was staging a coup." Akira tried to ignore Kaname's lost expression. "The result would have been a Fourth Great Ninja War. Itachi only had the village's best interest at heart."

"So his brother killed him," Eri finished. "The one he left alive."

"That's a little more intense than a family feud," Kaname breathed, piecing together the bits from Akira's previous explanation.

"Itachi never wanted Sasuke to know the truth, but he found out regardless after Itachi died," Akira continued. "Itachi had help from Uchiha Madara the night he murdered his clan. Madara was also the one who told Sasuke the truth about Itachi."

"Itachi told you all this?" Kaname asked incredulously.

Akira smiled nervously. "He transferred his knowledge to me with a jutsu before he died. I knew bits and pieces, but the jutsu is what fully did the trick. In the process, Itachi also ensured my escape from Akatsuki." Akira held up the ring on her necklace for Eri to see. "Each member has one of these. He gave me his."

"Deidara's was blue," Eri recalled. "And Tobi's was purple."

"What about the necklace? I don't recognize that." Kaname spoke this time and motioned to Akira's red pendant reading "fire."

Akira smiled softly at the memory. "This was Itachi's gift to me on my nineteenth birthday. It was supposed to be his mother's."

"Oh." The room fell silent.

"What about Deidara?" Eri finally asked. "Is he—?"

"I'm sorry, Eri. He's dead, too."

The dark-haired kunoichi went silent. Tears welled in all of their eyes now. Two hours of unison crying and failed conversation passed before they were finally ready to head home, albeit it not wholeheartedly.

Eri's brows knitted together in concern. "Are you sure—?"

"Eri, your parents will be surprised, but  _trust me_ , they will be more concerned about having you back," Akira assured for the third time. "Not to mention, this means they'll finally be able to have a grandchild."

"Just make sure you say it was a one-night stand on a mission," Kaname added. "That way, no one in the village gets blamed and there's no way to trace the father."

"Otherwise, I'm going to be completely honest," Eri determined, exhaling in an attempt to calm herself as she shouldered the bag of things she had brought with her. "Here goes nothing."

Even if her defection resulted in imprisonment, she was going to come back. Her friends had given her the strength to do so.

-

Kaede was the first they visited. As expected, there was yelling and the anticipated "Why didn't you just say so?!" Eri only winced slightly and forced herself to look back into the older woman's eyes as she apologized profusely. Punishment would be instated, but it was not the dire imprisonment Eri feared. She would be subjected to appropriate community service, given her situation, and suspended of her ninja duties for a time.

All things considered, it was a mere slap on the wrist. But next, came her parents.

Koizuki Yuudai and Kaoru were summoned to Kaede's office within the hour, and, judging by their forlorn expressions, they feared the worst.

However, the second Eri stepped out from the shadows and uttered, "Kaa-san, Tou-san, I'm home," both parents rushed forward to embrace her and held on as sobs shook their bodies.

Akira and Kaname smiled softly at the scene. Eri quietly promised to explain everything to them later while Kaede's guards ushered Eri's parents out of the room. Their healing teacher had a few things left to say to just the three of them.

"Koizuki Eri," Kaede began in a commanding voice that caused all three of them to jump, "I assume Akira has informed you of her intentions regarding Konoha?"

"Yes, Kaede-sensei." On the way back, Akira had divulged these details, as well.

"Well, Akira," she addressed the Hyuuga girl next. "I have received word from Konoha."

The three teammates waited in anticipation for her reply. Kaede's blank-faced expression betrayed nothing.

"They accept. You leave for Konoha tomorrow morning."

Akira's face broke out into a grin as she exchanged excited looks with Kaname and Eri. Both girls squeezed either of her hands before Akira let go to bow to the woman in gratitude.

"Thank you, Kaede-sensei!" Akira exclaimed, thankfully everyone could not see how goofily she smiled. However, only when she rose back to her full height did she detect the sad look in the woman's deep purple eyes. "Is something wrong?"

"Are you sure there is no way I can dissuade you from your decision? I was once the proud teacher of three students, and, until Eri's suspension finishes, despite having both of you back, I am once again down to one."

Akira's eyes also glazed over with sadness, but nonetheless, she said, "You flatter me, Kaede-sensei. However, my mind is made up."

"I was afraid you would say that." The middle-aged woman's lips twisted together sardonically. "Kaname and Eri will not be the only ones to miss you."

-

Subsequently after Kaede's announcement, Kaname and Eri were dismissed from the room and only business remained. Akira was left to divulge what she could about Akatsuki to Kaede, and thus completing her end of the bargain.

"And Akatsuki's intent is to attack Konoha using the power of the jinchuuriki?" Kaede surmised.

"There's a lot more to it than that, but yes. I don't know exactly when, but that is their main objective. Also, I would imagine the location of their organization has changed. The base closest to us will likely be abandoned upon anyone's infiltration."

"Can you have the profiles completed on Akatsuki's members by the time you leave tomorrow?"

"Yes, Kaede-sensei. I will drop them by."

"Good. Our allies will be greatly appreciative."

Akira trudged home, still an exhausted mess. She had not rested since before Eri's retrieval, and, while Eri smoothed things out with her parents, Kaname was likely waiting for both of them back at Akira's house. The three of them had promised to have one last night together before Akira's departure to Konoha.

The first thing Akira did was collapse onto her own bed. She hadn't actually slept here since before her kidnapping. She tried not to think about the activities that had commenced here since then, specifically with Deidara and Eri.

_I hope Eri at least thought to change the sheets._  Although presently, Akira was too tired to care much about anything, even cleanliness.

Knowing Eri's time with her parents would be a long one, Kaname allowed the Hyuuga girl to sleep for a few hours while she set to work on cooking dinner. Kaname was the least talented of them all in the kitchen, however, Akira and Eri had been careful to pick the easiest recipe they could find.

Unfortunately, Kaname still managed to burn what little there was to make and, by the time Akira awoke and Eri arrived, the three of them agreed to have instant ramen instead.

_Reminds me of my last meal with Deidara and Tobi,_  Akira thought, smiling to herself. That had been before she realized Tobi's true nature and before the unwitting father of Eri's child had died against the same boy who took Itachi from her.

"So, how did things go with your parents?" Kaname inquired. At last the three of them were gathered around Akira's table again, even with the less than desirable circumstances.

Eri took a sip of her tea and then said, "Surprisingly well, actually. If anything they blamed themselves, which was admittedly a bit strange. They wished they could've been more trustworthy so I wouldn't have felt the need to run away."

"That's great." Akira slurped down her ramen. Silence filled the room once again save for the sounds accompanied with eating. None of them knew what to talk about that didn't involve digging up painful memories.

Kaname brought her friends up to date on some of the village happenings. After a few brief nods and "hms," their cheap dinner finished and Akira left to start on her Akatsuki reports while Eri and Kaname scrounged for dessert.

The objects and clothes in Akira's bedroom lay untouched. She had been away for so long she had forgotten about most of her possessions, although, in the least, she was able to procure a new set of similar clothes to replace the light blue outfit she lost at Akatsuki.

_All of those hours I spent sewing my old one went to waste._ Not that it really mattered. She had plenty more here.

Eri had mentioned something about coming by to clean every once in a while, which would explain why everything wasn't completely covered in dust. Regardless, home didn't feel much like home anymore.

With no desk, Akira set to work on writing up the reports on her bed. She began with Deidara. Halfway through the first page, Akira was already sobbing.

"Akira?" It was Kaname's voice. Likely, she stood behind the door with dessert.

Akira wheezed a painful "Come in" and, judging by her friend's expression, she knew what was happening.

Kaname set the slice of homemade cake down on the nightstand and sat beside her on the bed, arms extended. Akira complied, a hysterical, exhausted heap, despite her previous two hour nap. It did not take long for Eri to come in and join them.

Somehow, the dark-haired kunoichi remained dry-eyed as Akira emptied what was left in her tear glands onto Kaname's shoulder while Eri lovingly stroked the Hyuuga girl's silky blonde hair. She was finally home and she couldn't even be happy. Anything—Akatsuki, the baby, Eri, Kaname and even Konoha—hurt too much to talk about, and now here she was trying to write the worst of it.

The three of them fell asleep like that on the bed with Kaname on her back against the pillows and Akira with her head rested on Kaname's chest. Eri hugged the Hyuuga girl from behind as far as she could manage and rested her wavy mess of dark hair on Akira's back.

Akira awoke particularly early the next morning, still tangled between her friends. Two people was a feat in of itself, but rarely could one manage to fit three people onto a twin size bed this comfortably. She somehow extricated herself without waking anyone and buzzed through the Akatsuki reports using last minute panic as her motivator, thankfully allowing little time for her to actually dwell on the events.

For whatever reason, the morning sickness did not come that day as she rushed to finish the reports. With her things packed and friends still sleeping, Akira said goodbye to unconscious faces and set out to Kaede-sensei's tower to drop off the files.

In two days' time, she would be in Konoha.


	31. Chapter 31

Out of paranoia and likely good sense, Kaede assigned both of her personal guards to escort Akira to Konoha with the argument that she had others, and, given the situation, Akira had no room to protest. Both of the men were placid company at best and any casual questions she asked were met with silence.

_Understandably, they don’t trust me._ She had “single-handedly” escaped from an S ranked criminal organization. For all they knew, she could still be working as a spy, or, as Akira warned Kaede-sensei beforehand, Akatsuki could be after her life.

Thankfully, the entire trip went without issue, and, after forty eight hours of maddening silence, Akira recognized the Hidden Leaf Village symbol atop a set of massive stone gates with wooden doors.

_So this is it—Itachi’s village._  The place that had taken her love away from her, and the place that he had seen as more valuable than anything, save for his little brother.

Akira had weaseled out of any medical tests in the Whirlpool Village. Likely, Kaede assumed they would all be conducted in Konoha. Akira hoped to avoid such examinations until absolutely necessary. One visit to the doctor’s office and she would be found out. She knew enough about prenatal care to properly care for herself until the end of her second trimester, but, far more pressingly, questions about her child’s father were not something she could handle right now.

One of her escorts signaled a guard to confirm their identity, and the gates opened, revealing two painted red symbols inside the double doors’ heavy wooden surfaces. Akira moved to take a step forward, but the two men behind her stopped in their tracks.

“Aren’t you coming?” Akira inquired. She did not expect an answer, but, much to her surprise, one of the burly men spoke at last.

“Kaede ordered us to escort you to Konoha. We were not given orders to accompany you inside,” the one man said. His partner nodded in agreement.

“Oh. Well, I guess this is good bye then.” She offered them a friendly wave and a smile, to which they both remained stone-faced. She hadn’t even known their names.

Two new and far less burly men stood guard at the village gate, one with straight brown hair and the other with darker and much wilder hair.

The lighter-haired fellow wore his leaf hitiate as a bandana and fashioned his chin-length hair in a way that covered his ears and his entire left eye. The black-haired ninja wore his leaf hitiate in the standard fashion on his forehead and donned a goatee on his chin and a bandage over his nose. Both sported matching olive flak jackets and long-sleeved shirts with an odd red swirl on both biceps.

 “Hello, my name is Hyuuga Akira. I’m from the Whirlpool Village,” Akira greeted. “I’m here to train under Tsunade-sama.” She hoped her words didn’t sound as stupid to them as they did in her head.

“I’m Kotetsu,” the black-haired one said. “This is Izumo.” He motioned to his friend. “And you’re Hyuuga Akira, you say?”

Akira nodded and handed them the folder of papers Kaede had instructed her to give them upon arrival. They glanced over the documents and, after a mutual nod, the one named Izumo whistled and before Akira could blink, another ninja with wild, gravity-defying silver hair and a dark blue mask appeared before her. His forehead protector tilted to conceal his left eye, while his only visible right eye was half-lidded in a lazy stare.

“This is Kakashi. He’ll take you to Tsunade.” Akira blinked several times at the man as her memories intermingled with Itachi’s. Somehow, she knew him.

Hatake Kakashi, the copy ninja—he was one of Itachi’s ANBU teammates before the Uchiha prodigy had achieved the status of ANBU captain and transferred teams. Kakashi was also one of the ninjas who had escorted her to the Whirlpool Village with Itachi all those years ago, although Akira doubted he would recognize her. Itachi certainly hadn’t.

Izumo handed her back the documents, and, without further ado, Kakashi led her down the wide path toward the hokage’s tower at the top of Konoha’s mountain.

Along with Itachi’s memories, Akira had received an internal map of Konoha in her head. She had never been here before in her life, but, thanks to Itachi, she already knew where everything was, or at least where it all had been ten years ago.

Her gaze drew to the hokage monument, where her memory recalled four faces. There were five.

Without thinking, Akira murmured, “That’s new.”

Kakashi raised his only visible eyebrow. Realizing her mistake, Akira corrected, “I mean, the monument… did you recently add to it?”

“Tsunade-sama’s face was carved into the mountain within the past year, yes.” The copy ninja already looked suspicious. Akira resisted every urge to palm her forehead as he continued. “And your last name is ‘Hyuuga’ you say?”

“Y-yes. Why?”

“Just wondering if you’ve ever been to Konoha before. The Land of Fire is the Hyuuga clan’s origin.”

In reality, her father had been banished from the Hyuuga clan after marrying her mother. Apparently, he had been of some significance here, a “Main Twig” or something—either way, her father Hyuuga Shuuichi had chosen to abandon his roots and the arranged marriage they desired for him and instead live with her mother in Kusagakure.

Akira laughed nervously. “Guess I’m just a renegade. I’ve never been here before.” Maybe not, but Itachi’s memories begged to differ.

A lot had changed in ten years. The way to the hokage’s tower remained the same, but there were many new buildings, and most of the ones she did “recall” had long since been torn down or modified. Akira was amazed Kakashi wasn’t asking more questions with all the incredulous looks she was giving the place.

Itachi had not personally seen the current hokage in years, so Akira had no idea what to expect.

The symbol on the top of the building matched the one on her necklace. The hokage’s actual office was up a number of steps, and, although Akira would normally have no issue with such a task, she blamed the long journey and inevitable exhaustion for her strain. Kakashi made no comment, but likely he could tell.

Upon reaching their destination, Kakashi was kind enough to open the door for her and, with a quick exhale of serenity, Akira stepped inside.

The actual room was considerably clean with its plaster white walls and tile floor, although the lone desk in the middle of the room was stacked with countless scrolls and procrastinated paperwork. The multiple windows behind the desk were open probably not for the view, but to air out the undeniable stench of sake.

In addition to the hokage, who Akira presumed was the busty blonde woman behind the only desk in the room, five other chakra presences shared the space with Kakashi and her.

“Tsunade-sama! I’ve told you not to drink sake in the middle of the day!” The first was a dark-haired woman in her late twenties dressed almost completely in black and carrying a pig, who looked surprisingly content for being dressed in fake pearls and a red vest.

“Sake? What are you talking about, Shizune? At least allow Team Yamato to give their mission report.” There was an ironic drunken slur to her voice that Akira had to bite her lip not to laugh at.

Among the other four presences was another jounin like Kakashi with eerie doll-like eyes and brown hair, likely Yamato, which made the other three his team.

The only female among them, a pink-haired girl with vibrant jade green eyes, was the first to notice them. Her other two teammates were a spiky blonde-haired boy dressed in black and orange, and another boy with sickly pale skin and a cut off shirt that showed more midriff than Akira thought possible for a straight male.

“Ah, Kakashi-sensei!” she exclaimed. Her eyes rested on Akira. “Who’s the girl?”

Tsunade’s amber eyes flicked to Akira and soon as did other gazes in the room. With so many stares, Akira shifted uncomfortably before clearing her throat to speak.

“Hello, I’m Hyuuga Akira from the Whirlpool Village,” she introduced. “Karasuma Kaede sent me.” Not knowing what else to do, she stepped forward and bowed slightly as she handed the documents to Tsunade. If the documents had been good enough for the village guards to let her proceed, hopefully they would also be good enough for the hokage.

“Ah yes. I remember Kaede mentioning you,” Tsunade muttered, looking bored. “It’s been years since I’ve heard from the woman.”

“You know Kaede-sensei?” Akira tried not to sound too curious, but she had been unaware of her sensei's former acquaintance with the surprisingly young-looking sannin. Itachi’s jutsu told her, though, that Tsunade used a sealing jutsu to keep herself looking young.

“We go way back, but that is not of importance right now.” The hokage turned her attention back to the copy nin. “Kakashi, take her to where she’ll be living during her time here. I would imagine Akira is tired from her journey.”

The idea of rest came as a relief to the Hyuuga girl; however, she knew their conversation was not yet done. Turning her attention back to Akira, Tsunade barked, “Meet me back in this office at 5 tomorrow morning! I do not tolerate tardiness. Is that clear?”

“Yes, ma’am.” Considering some of her missions at Akatsuki, 5 a.m. was nothing.

“Tsunade-sama,” the pink-haired girl cut in, “perhaps I could take Akira-san to where she will be staying? If it is the apartments I’m thinking of, I’m headed in that direction, anyway.”

Akira was secretly amazed at how familiarly the pink-haired girl talked to the legendary sannin, but after a quick background check, Akira “recalled” that the girl was Haruno Sakura, the hokage’s apprentice.

_And formerly Sasuke’s teammate…._

“If you wish, Sakura,” the hokage said, and Kakashi looked visibly relaxed at the relief of duties as he handed a pair of keys to the pink-haired girl and was about to form a hand sign to leave before Tsunade continued, “Don’t worry, Kakashi, I have plenty else for you to do here.”

Much later than expected, the spiky blonde-haired one interjected.

“Wait, so how come your name is Hyuuga and you’re not from around here? Is she related to Hinata?”

“Who?” Akira had never heard of any Hinata, but luckily Tsunade came to her aid.

“Yes, Akira possesses Hyuuga heritage, but she has never been to Konoha, Naruto. I doubt Hinata or any of the other Hyuugas have ever heard of her.”

“Wait, so then you can use the byakugan—”

“Shut up, Naruto!” In one fluid motion, the one named Sakura twisted the blonde boy’s ear and a loud, “Itai!” replaced his protests. The pale boy did something resembling a laugh before Sakura apologetically turned back to Akira.

“Sorry about Naruto. Tact is not something he had a lot of.”

Ah yes, Naruto, the Kyuubi jinchuuriki— _Itachi’s_  assigned jinchuuriki. The loud-mouthed, heartfelt, orange-clad ninja extraordinaire. Also, the other sannin Jiraiya’s apprentice, and yet another person hell bent on saving Sasuke. That certainly explained things.

Akira smiled, amused at the scene. “Not to worry. Teammates are to treasured, even the loud ones.” She thought back to Kaname and Eri. Out of the three of them, Naruto reminded her of Kaname. Hopefully, she and Eri would not be angry with her for neglecting to wake them the morning she left.

“You sound like you speak from experience.” The pale-skinned boy spoke, and Akira found his voice to be just as unnerving as his appearance.

“This is Sai, by the way,” Sakura said, gesturing toward the pale boy. “He’s not as loud as Naruto, but feel free to ignore anything he has to say, as well.” With that, Sakura released Naruto’s ear and, while the Kyuubi jinchuuriki tentatively rubbed the area, Sakura walked over to Akira. “I’ll be back in a few minutes, Tsunade-sama! Naruto and Sai can fill you in on our mission details!”

Akira could hardly say goodbye before Sakura ushered her out of the room and shut the door behind them. They descended the stairs in silence and only when they were outside walking down the street did Sakura speak again.

“So… you’re from the Whirlpool Village, huh?” Akira nodded. “What’s it like there?”

“Much… smaller,” Akira managed. “Some similarities, but we don’t have a hokage. Our village leader’s name is Karasuma Hayato. I trained under his older sister, Kaede-sensei. She’s the one in charge of the medical facilities where I come from.”

“It must be nice being from a smaller village,” Sakura remarked and the most Akira could do was keep smiling. Considering she hadn’t lived in the Whirlpool Village for over a year, she would have to fake her way through most of this conversation.

“Sometimes. It can get annoying when everyone knows everything about everyone.” Or so some people thought—it had taken months to find Eri, who had also lived there all her life. “So, where were you and your team coming from? A mission, if I heard correctly.”

“Yeah, we just got back.” Sakura looked much less cheerful at the mention of this, and then it clicked with Akira which mission they had come from. She must have been on the Konoha team Zetsu warned her to avoid. “It was a failure, but…” she trailed off.

Trying to change the subject, Akira asked, “What about Sai? He looks… interesting.”

Suddenly, Sakura laughed again. “Interesting would be a good way to put it. So would ‘creepy’ and ‘downright infuriating.’”

“As long as you get done what you need to. How many years have you trained under Tsunade?”

“Oh yeah, that’s part of the reason I wanted to walk with you,” Sakura recalled. “Just to warn you, Tsunade has a good heart, but she can be harsh and has some very unorthodox methods of training.”

_Unorthodox?_ Akira thought, a sweat drop sliding down the side of her face.

“I can’t tell you for sure what she’s going to do for you, but just try your best and everything should be fine. Tsunade-sama can’t stand quitters.”

“Hm.” Akira didn’t consider herself a quitter, but she could not be sure if Tsunade would agree.

Noting her expression, Sakura added, “Not to worry. If Tsunade accepted your sensei’s request to help train you, she probably doesn’t think you’re a quitter already.”

Akira laughed nervously. “I hope not.”

Akira and Sakura reached the aforementioned apartment complex after a few more minutes of walking and small talk. Without further explanation, Sakura burst into the building and the two of them started up the stairs.

“So which floor am I on?” Akira inquired. Sakura whipped out the keys to examine the label.

“Uh… fifth floor, apparently.”

_Fifth?_ Akira hoped her face didn’t fall noticeably. There was no visible elevator. Right now, that wasn’t an issue, but in her later months—an image of an extremely pregnant version of herself hobbling up the stairs flashed through Akira’s mind—that would not be pleasant.

“Something wrong?” Sakura’s voice broke Akira out of her trance as the hokage’s apprentice glanced back at the Hyuuga girl.

“Not at all. Just wondering what sort of training Tsunade’s program will entail.”

Akira felt about the same as she had after climbing the stairs to Tsunade’s office with Kakashi. One advantage to Akatsuki had been its lack of stairs. Upon arrival, Akira waited patiently for Sakura to unlock the apartment door before both of them wandered inside.

“Wow…” Akira had not expected anything like this.

It was small, but there was a place for shoes by the door, which lead to a furnished living room with an adjacent dining room and kitchen. The hallway straight ahead had four closed doors, two on each side. Akira found the first door on her right to be a bathroom complete with its own shower. The door across from that was a closet, and the remaining two were bedrooms.

The hot water ran, the premise looked relatively bug-free, and, at this hour in the afternoon, she detected no signs of noisy neighbors.

“So you like it, then?” Sakura smiled.

“Definitely,” Akira confirmed, eying the room once again. Admittedly, the walls were blank and somber, but she didn’t mind at all. “I take it Tsunade has you and Kakashi play tour guide often?

“Not quite like this. Whenever we have visitors to the village, we situate them here, and oftentimes either Shizune or I am selected to show them around. Not usually Kakashi-sensei. This is also the first time I’ve seen Tsunade accept a foreign student like this.”

“Guess I should feel privileged then.” Which she did. Privileged to be here and privileged to be alive. Though, part of her still wondered how Kaede-sensei and Tsunade-sama knew each other.

“Just give us a holler if you need anything,” Sakura said, heading toward the door. “Enjoy your stay here, Akira-san!” And with that, she was gone.

Akira spent the next hour unpacking what little she had brought. Like the living room, the master bedroom was fully furnished with a queen-sized bed, mirror, and dresser. As soon as the last few clothes and weapons were unpacked, exhaustion fully set in and Akira decided rather than doing some much-needed grocery shopping, she should test out the comfort of the bed.

She collapsed face-first onto the soft cotton sheets.

_It’s nicer than the beds at Akatsuki,_ Akira thought, turning her head to the side so she could breathe. Still, she’d give anything to be back on a lumpy Akatsuki bed if it meant Itachi were sleeping there next to her, or, in the case of Konan’s room, on the other side of the wall.

But here she was, in Konoha. Never in a million years would she have dreamed of visiting this place, let alone willfully leaving to train here. When he was alive, her father had never mentioned Konoha. Judging by Sakura’s comments, she was extremely fortunate to have been accepted here at all.

She missed Itachi. She missed Kaede-sensei, Kaname, and Eri. Her reunion with her friends had been much too short, but Akira knew the longer she stayed, the less chance she possessed of coming to Konoha and possibly making a difference.

She hadn’t been able to tell Kaede absolutely everything about Akatsuki’s plan, but she had told enough. She could warn of a village-wide attack, but she couldn’t just randomly say that Itachi’s younger brother would be teaming up with Akatsuki to attack the Leaf Village due to a life-long misunderstanding of village politics and tragic stories.

She couldn’t even tell her sensei about Itachi’s child without endangering everyone. In that regard, Eri had it easier than her.

If anyonesave for her friends found out about Itachi’s baby, word could spread—the wrong people could overhear, especially with the Whirlpool Village being so close to Akatsuki’s former base. Worse yet, if Madara found out, he would have all the more reason to find her.

Likely, the Akatsuki leader still considered her a mere nuisance Deidara had chosen to take along on a whim. If he ever realized how much she knew and what Itachi had revealed to her in that knowledge transfer jutsu, she would be dead—all of them would.

Tears began to fall again as Akira gripped her stomach. For now, she looked normal, but soon that would change. What could she say? How could she explain this away? She couldn’t fool a sannin forever.

Regardless, this was the last piece of Itachi she had left. This and Konoha. Whatever it took, she was going to protect them.

-

As promised, at five in the morning, Akira was back in Tsunade’s office. Oddly enough, upon her arrival, the hokage was not there yet, but Akira patiently waited a good ten minutes before she recognized two chakra presences ascending the stairs.

_So much for being strict about time,_ Akira thought, swaying back and forth in anticipation before the hokage’s desk. Within seconds, however, Tsunade burst into the room, looking flustered, with her trusted assistant Shizune close behind, still holding that strange pet pig.

“My apologies for the lateness, Akira!” the hokage barked. “Follow me!”

_I guess it was an important village meeting or something._

Akira silently obeyed as the hokage led her out of the tower (and once again down that dreaded flight of stairs) and off to a training area not far from the building with Shizune following silently behind them.

Without warning, the hokage stopped walking near the middle of the training grounds, surrounded by trees and various targets intended for kunai and shuriken.

“Hyuuga Akira,” Tsunade began, pointing at the kunoichi. “Attack me with all you’ve got!”

Akira hesitated, wondering if this were some sort of loyalty test. But the second she saw the hokage’s chakra-infused fist draw back, she knew this was no joke.

_Byakugan!_  She needed to avoid those at all costs.

Ten minutes later, Akira lay on the ground panting wildly. Dirt splotched the Hyuuga girl’s face, and multiple craters surrounded them from the hokage’s attacks and another more circular one from the Hyuuga girl’s rotation.

The hokage stood at her full height, surveying the Hyuuga girl from her position above.

“Hm, ten minutes,” she said in a tone Akira couldn’t discern as impressed or disappointed. “That’s twice as long as Sakura’s first time.”

Despite the chakra exhaustion, Akira, through sheer determination, forced herself to her knees and somehow managed to stand.

“Not… yet,” Akira managed between pants, repositioning herself into a Hyuuga stance.

Smirking, Tsunade approached her. Sadly, Akira knew she barely had the chakra to activate her byakugan at this point.

“You can use the gentle fist,” Tsunade began, her hand extended into what looked like a flicking motion. Akira dodged the hokage’s first attempt at her forehead, “and the rotation. Not to mention, you have an impressive display of water jutsu, including several of your own and the mizubunshin.”

Chakra reserves screaming, Akira could scarcely raise her arms as Tsunade’s hand hovered centimeters from her hitiate. Realizing the futility, Akira broke eye contact with the sannin and braced herself for impact. Much to her surprise, nothing came. Instead, Tsunade spoke again.

“Impressive for not having another Hyuuga to actively train you. You have at least a jounin-level power. Maybe more.”

Akira brought her gaze back up to the sannin’s eye level, and deactivated her byakugan once she realized the hokage did not intend to strike her. Or so she thought.

A searing pain shot through her chin before Akira could blink. The last thing she heard was, “But never lower your guard!”

By the time she came to, someone’s healing energy was being poured into her skull. Akira’s eyes opened to reveal a blurry Shizune. Through some miracle, save for that last strike, Akira had avoided any major blows from Tsunade.

“Tsunade-sama, is it necessary to be this harsh on her first day?”

“What are you talking about, Shizune? She did well!” At this, Akira smiled weakly, although her splitting headache begged to differ. “Kaede was right about her.”

After a few more seconds of Shizune’s healing, Akira was well enough to stand.

_All of this to test my power._   _I should’ve known._ Of course the hokage wouldn’t take Kaede-sensei’s word for it, even if they were old friends.

“Great, you can stand,” Tsunade said. “Now let’s go back and test your healing ninjutsu.”

It was well past five the evening before Akira returned to her apartment, and, save for a brief lunch break around noon, she had worked non-stop.

_Kaede-sensei’s training is a walk in the park compared to this!_ Still, it was easier than her single fight with Konan. She hadn’t needed to be carried off the training grounds this time around.

Finally, though, she was able to take a shower and wash off the grime and sweat from the day. Her muscles screamed in protest as the hot water made contact with her skin, but, save for healing ninjutsu that Akira did not have the chakra to provide, this was the most she could do.

Akira ate a light dinner of plain rice and a mass of vitamin capsules. Her biggest goal right now was to avoid an empty stomach. She still neglected to go shopping and stock her apartment’s food supply, but, at the moment, she simply did not have the energy. In the least, Shizune had provided an adequate lunch that afternoon.

She had enough water to drink, but food was certainly an issue right now. If training tomorrow was anything like today, she would not be eating much at all this week.

-

Sasuke panted as he dodged one of Madara’s attacks. Blood dripped from his left eye.

_Amaterasu!_ For the third time that night, black flames sprang to life and headed toward the elder Uchiha. Through some miracle, Madara once again escaped unscathed.

“You’re going to have to do better than that if you ever hope to crush Konoha.”

Madara had warned him that it would take time to get fully used to Itachi’s abilities. His brother had left him with an arsenal, but had neglected to include instructions on how to fully utilize them. That, however, was where Madara came in.

Not just with training, but there were other things that had to be in order for them to attack Konoha. If they succeeded and all-out war began, the siege would last days, possibly longer, and they would require supplies. Not just that, but they would have to wait for when Konoha least expected them.

Patience was not something Sasuke had a lot of. He wanted to attack Konoha immediately, but Madara constantly reminded him that he was not yet ready, and, though Sasuke hated to admit it, the older man was right.

Sasuke charged his lightning blade and waited for just the right moment to stab it through his temporary instructor. As expected, it passed right through.

_This is an extent of his sharingan, but how? An alternate dimension?_

The younger Uchiha could hardly blink, let alone activate Susanoo before Madara appeared seemingly out of nowhere and sent him flying from a single strike.

“We should stop here for tonight,” Madara stated as he watched from a good ten feet away as Sasuke stumbled back to his feet, using his lightning blade for support.

Sasuke spat out a mixture of blood and saliva as he pulled his sword from the ground and pointed it menacingly at his opponent.

 “Not… yet...” Madara would not even consider discussing strategy with him until the younger Uchiha managed to inflict an injury upon him, and that, Sasuke was determined to do.

Tobi offered him a shrug, and, with a battle cry, Sasuke resumed his attack.


	32. Chapter 32

Lavender eyes observed a familiar blonde with concealed intensity as Tsunade's latest student emerged from the hokage's tower.

Her outfit was a light blue gi top with matching pants and tight black cloth covering the remainder of her wrists and ankles. A shoulder bag, likely containing papers and weapons, was slung diagonally from her shoulder. Long braided blonde hair whipped in the afternoon breeze. Most interesting of all, however were the two yellow patches on either of her arms bearing the Hyuuga symbol.

News had spread through Konoha of a foreigner who had journeyed to come train under Tsunade from a tiny place called the Whirlpool Village. Her name was Hyuuga Akira, the beginning factor in piquing Hyuuga Taisou's interest.

At first, he had brushed off the name as mere coincidence. Perhaps another Hyuuga from Konoha had gone turncoat and moved to Kusagakure to start a family. Akira was a common name. It was entirely possible.

But, upon seeing her, those features were unmistakable. Everything about her looked like Kiari, except for those eyes. Her eyes were all Shuuichi, which he shared with the rest of the Hyuuga clan.

The first time Taisou had seen her, he was returning from a mission, and, by coincidence, she had been there working in the hokage's office. Upon learning her identity as Tsunade's latest student, he had continued watching her from afar. His suspicions were confirmed long ago of her identity, but Taisou could not quite bring himself to talk to her yet.

This was his niece—the one he thought was dead all these years.

-

Akira shifted nervously as a robed man with long brown hair approached her in the crowd. The bustle of Konoha's afternoon streets was not something to be tampered with. Through some miracle, Tsunade had let her off early that day due to an unexpected council meeting with the village elders, and Akira was determined to use the time for some much-needed grocery shopping.

However, the figure walking in her direction was definitely looking at her. Instinctively, Akira slipped a kunai from her sleeve as he drew closer.

"Excuse me," he began, and Akira clutched the kunai tighter, "I was wondering, are you Hyuuga Akira?"

"Who wants to know?" Upon closer inspection, she noticed his eyes were lavender like hers. A Hyuuga?

Rather than answering her question, he continued, "Did you know a Hyuuga Shuuichi or Kiari?"

Caught completely off guard, she nearly lost her grip on the kunai at the mention of her parents' names. Her attention drew away from man's lavender eyes and rather down toward the fan clutched in his palm. He opened the object and lightly fanned himself as he waited for an answer. It had been over ten years ago, but she would recognize that nervous habit anywhere.

"Uncle?" her tone pinched. He beamed at her answer. "Uncle Taisou?!"

"I thought you were dead, Akira." He smiled softly. "You've grown."

"The last time I saw you, I was six!" the Hyuuga girl exclaimed. The kunai was replaced into her weapon's pouch. She'd completely forgotten about any of her family ties since coming to Konoha. She knew the Hyuuga clan was from here, but, with everything going on, she had not thought to look up her uncle.

Still, his habit of always carrying that same fan remained forever ingrained in her memory. This was her father's younger brother. He had visited them once, but only once, when she was child. He had talked with her parents, played with her and then left. She'd never seen him again. Both those eyes and that fan—they were unmistakable.

"How did you survive?" By now, they had moved out of the middle of the busy street and nearer to the hokage's tower where Akira had come from.

"My mother hid me in a closet. The invaders couldn't sense chakra, so I was spared. Leaf ANBU found me and took me to the Whirlpool Village."

Taisou shook his head. "Of course, they never told of a survivor."

Akira shrugged. "Here I am."

"And Tsunade's latest student, no less!" Taisou remarked, his tone impressed. "You've become quite an accomplished ninja."

"I suppose you could put it that way."

"Where are you living?"

"An apartment complex not far from here. It's where Tsunade hosts most of the visiting diplomats and ninja."

"Have you met any other Hyuugas yet?"

Akira shook her head. "Naruto mentioned a 'Hinata,' but other than that no."

Taisou smiled at her. "How would you like to meet some? You have the rest of the afternoon off, correct?"

"I—uh…" She didn't know what to say. "I'm a foreigner. Don't most clans have a problem with that?"

"Hardly. The blood running through your veins is Main Branch. In the least, the Cadet Branches are obligated to respect Shuuichi's lineage. Although if Hiashi has a problem with you being there, I will deal with him," Taisou assured. "I would love to spend the rest of the afternoon with my niece."

Although Akira did not understand all of his terms immediately, she was unable to say no to such a heartwarming explanation. Taisou led her in the opposite direction of her apartment and toward a place Itachi's memory told her was the Hyuuga compound.

It was the strangest thing, having never been somewhere before, yet knowing the place well. At least she had seen pictures in books before of the land marks in Konoha. The inside of the Hyuuga compound was an entirely different story.

The area was filled with mansions she could have only dreamed of entering. Of course, she and Taisou were first subjected to the guards at the entrance of the Hyuuga compound. Taisou said a few inaudible words to one of them, and, with a blank-faced stare, the two allowed them through the wooden gates surrounding the mass of houses.

_It's like entering Konoha all over again,_  Akira thought. She only became more amazed as they stepped inside.

Even more to Akira's surprise, Taisou lived across from the Hyuuga leader's house, where the one named Hinata, her sister Hanabi, and their father Hiashi lived. Taisou wife, unfortunately, had died of illness ten years ago and they had never bore any children together. After that, her uncle had never remarried.

"So if my father was born before you, how are you a Main Branch?" Akira inquired, confused.

"Well, when Shuuichi left to marry Kiari, the clan disowned him, and I was bumped up in line," Taisou explained. "By default, I became a Main Branch Hyuuga."

"Then how does that make me a Main Branch?"

"You're the most direct living family I have. They have to honor that." His gaze rested on Hiashi's house. "I'll take you to meet our clan leader. He will be surprised to learn you're alive."

The clan leader's house was the grandest of them all. Servants gathered around the area, tending to the gardens and greeting them at the door. Once again, Taisou said something which allowed both of them to enter. After being led down a long wooden hallway, they came to a room with vastly decorated walls and traditional garb. A white robed man in a black overcoat waited there, sitting on a mat and facing one of the walls, likely meditating.

As they entered the room, his eyes opened to reveal the pupil-less lavender iris that each of them shared.

"Taisou," he said, not yet turning around, "I see you've brought a visitor."

"Shuuichi's daughter lives, Hiashi. Akira is the hokage's new student."

At this, the leader turned to face them. "So, you're the hokage's new apprentice," Hiashi said, eyeing the Hyuuga girl from head to foot. "Tell me, how did you survive the attack on your village?"

Taisou seemed shocked at this being his first question, but Akira, numb to such things, answered calmly with the same explanation she had given Taisou.

"My mother hid me in a closet when they came. The invaders could not sense chakra, so I was spared."

"Leaf ANBU of all things were the one who brought her to the nearby Whirlpool Village," Taisou added, eager to drop the topic of his brother's demise. However, Hiashi did not share his sentiments.

"And which leaf ANBU brought you there?"

Taisou looked shocked again, but Akira nonetheless replied, "Uchiha Itachi and Hatake Kakashi, although I doubt either of them remember me. I do not recall the rest of the team, but those were the two who discovered me."

"Hm. Uchiha Itachi, the traitor." Akira dug her fingernails into her palm to keep from reacting. Her blood boiled at his words, but, lips pursed in a straight line, she kept her vision focused on Hiashi. "He has long since defected. And the copy ninja does not remember you, you say?"

Akira shook her head. "It was nearly ten years ago."

"She is my closest living relative," Taisou cut in as politely as possible. "I am requesting your permission to make her my heir."

Akira turned to Taisou with wide eyes. "Eh—?"

"Her father Shuiichi was removed from the clan upon his decision to marry her mother," Hiashi countered.

"Yes, but her parents are dead. Akira should not be charged with any fault of theirs."

"She is not a pure-blooded Hyuuga."

"But she can use the byakugan just as well as any of us!" Taisou argued. "Tsunade-sama said so herself."

Hiashi smirked at the man. "Then let's test this, shall we?"

The next thing Akira knew, she was being lead out into an open area situated in the middle of the house, likely a private training grounds complete with trees and its own koi pond. Already there were two teenagers, likely a few years younger than her. Both had pale skin and long flowing hair, although upon closer inspection, one was male and the other female.

The male, dressed almost entire in white, looked a great deal like Hiashi with his dark brown hair and stern facial features. The girl, dressed in a lavender jacket and dark blue pants, had shiny blue hair and straight cut bangs. Her complexion was much softer than her opponent's as her sandal-clad feet stumbled clumsily while she blocked and parried the male's clearly softened blows.

"Hinata, Neji!" At Hiashi's words, the two immediately halted their spar and turned to face the man. Another girl seated on the wooden porch had been watching the young Hyuugas from a distance. Her hair was brown like Neji's fashioned down with a single strand in front of her face. Her eyes rested on Akira, but she said nothing.

"Yes, Father?" The one named Hinata panted slightly, but quickly scurried over to where the three of them stood, Neji following close behind.

"This is Hyuuga Akira. She is a relative of Taisou's," Hiashi introduced. Hinata bowed, but Neji stared at her with stern eyes.

"You must be the hokage's new student that Naruto-kun mentioned," Hinata said, smiling as she rose from her bow. "Pleased to meet you."

"And the same to you, Hinata-san," Akira said, returning the gesture.

"Taisou desires to make her his heir. However, she must first prove her worth," Hiashi continued. He turned to Akira with cold eyes. "You will fight Neji. If you can win, you are worthy. If not, I never wish to see you here again."

A hush fell over the area. The unnamed girl on the porch was the first to speak.

"This pale-haired blondie is gonna fight Neji? Ha! This outta be good!" she remarked, smirking like Hiashi.

"Hanabi, be nice!" Hinata shushed.

"Hiashi, this is unreasonable!" Taisou hissed. "Neji is one of our clan's best fighters! He is a jouin!"

"If she is as good as you claim, this should not be a problem then, should it?" Hiashi said, smugly eying the man.

"Yes, but—"

"It's alright," Akira cut in, surprising everyone. She waited for a moment and then continued, "Uncle Taisou, I appreciate the honor, but I do not wish to be your heir."

Taisou opened his mouth to argue, but Akira spoke first.

"However," she turned to Hiashi, "if fighting Neji is what must be done to visit my uncle, I will do it."

Her words silenced everyone in the area. However, after a few tension-filled seconds, Akira handed her shoulder bag to Taisou, who moved to join Hanabi on the porch alongside Hiashi and Hinata.

"I apologize for us having to meet this way," Akira said, activating her byakugan and settling into a stance.

"Think nothing of it." Neji, in return, reactivated his byakugan.

Forming a quick hand sign, Akira was the first to attack. Looking bored, Neji stopped her with a powerful strike to the chest. She melted into a puddle of water.

"A mizubunshin?!" He hardly had time to utter his words, let alone block before Akira re-appeared behind him with a strike of her own.

"Impressive. For a half breed," Hiashi remarked, to which Hinata looked extremely uncomfortable and Taisou scowled. Hanabi was far more interested in the fight.

"Come on, Neji!" she cheered.

Akira and Neji exchanged blows. First, Akira attempted a debilitation jutsu using her jyuuken, which Neji blocked.

_They weren't kidding about him being powerful_. The strength behind his strikes and precise chakra control clearly displayed that much.  _Still, he's nothing compared to Itachi or even Deidara._ He possessed better hand to hand skills than Deidara, but he was not nearly as creative.

To allow herself some space, Akira threw a spray of kunai, which Neji dodged before the one with the exploding tag became obvious and he resorted his rotation to avoid injury.

_So he can use the rotation, too?_  Likely, he would not easily fall for her shockwave jutsu as many others had. She would need a more creative strategy to defeat him. Just then, Neji jumped forward, clearly with the intent of using a jyuuken of his own. Akira dodged, but barely.

_Come on, Akira, think._

She formed the hand sign for three more mizubunshin as Neji closed in again.

After dodging more his pokes, two of her clones attacked him from either side, which Neji jumped, executing a circular attack with his arms extended and liquidized both of them. Only her original and one other clone remained.

_Let's see: first impression of the guy is that he's a major stiff and a stickler for the rules—a lot like Itachi._ She glanced back at Hinata.  _But, just like Itachi, he loves his younger sibling._

She could never hope to beat someone like Itachi in a fair fight, but, then again, who was talking fair? This last move would cost her final clone, but, whatever it took, she was not losing.

Neji closed in for his next attack. But, just as he liquidized her last clone with a swift kick to the abdomen and closed in for the final strike, Akira rushed in for a move of her own.

Fist raised and chakra infused, Akira was centimeters from the Hyuuga prodigy's face. But rather than attacking, she whispered three simple words.

Neji blanched, stopping his strike dead in his tracks as her words sunk in. Now was her chance.

"Hyaa!" Akira threw her last strike with everything she had. A cloud of dust rose up, concealing the two as a sickening  _thud_  sounded.

The onlookers squinted to see the results. At last, the earth cleared and onlookers squinted to see Akira pinning Neji to the ground, a knee dug into his ribcage and a kunai to his throat.

Her hit had landed: a square palm to his chin. Neji was down.

"She did it!" Taisou didn't bother concealing his excitement.

"No way…" Hiashi, Hanabi and Hinata's jaws all dropped.

"She beat Nii-san," Hinata whispered. Hanabi had no words, but nodded slowly.

Panting, but not nearly as heavily as she had against Tsunade, Akira rose back to her full height and offered a hand to help up Neji, which he scornfully slapped aside. Pride-injured, he could scarcely look her in the eye.

Without thinking, Akira replaced her kunai and went into teaching mode.

"You have powerful strikes, but not a lot of creative attacks. You spend a lot of time trying to defend your blind spot, but end up missing what's right in front of you by over-analyzing the tiny details. Sometimes an attack is exactly what it looks like." In the least, she owed him an explanation of how she had defeated him.

He said nothing, but Akira knew he had heard her, and, in a way, she was reminded of herself. Although he hadn't utilized this exact strategy, Itachi had beaten her hundreds of times. It had taken weeks for her pride not to matter anymore. How could she expect Neji to be okay with being humbled so quickly?

"You did well." He probably took her remark as taunting but Akira didn't care. She genuinely meant the compliment.

"Congratulations, Taisou," Hiashi spoke stiffly. "Akira is permitted to be your heir."

Taisou and Akira exchanged grins.

"However," Hiashi continued, "for the sake of our clan, I would appreciate if word of this little skirmish did not reach the rest of Konoha."

"It stays here," Akira promised.

Sweaty from the fight and with no spare clothes to change into, Hinata quickly volunteered her possessions and allowed Akira into her room to shower and change.

"Just tell me if everything fits properly!" Hinata called over the running water while Akira rinsed off. She had left a stack of clothes for her on the toilet.

"Thank you!" Akira was amazed at the hospitality of these people. Did they treat everyone who defeated one of their fighters this way?

Upon exiting the Hyuuga heiress's shower in her private bathroom, Akira could not help but examine herself in the mirror. What she found both excited and dismayed her. It was subtle, but her once flat stomach had grown an unmistakable bump. Instinctively, Akira placed her hand over the area.

Her child was growing. As far as she could tell, everything proceeded normally. Upon her return to the Whirlpool Village, she'd been wise enough to revert back to the much baggier, light blue outfit she'd worn prior to Akatsuki, but soon even that would fail to hide what was to come.

"Does everything fit properly?" Hinata's sweet tone broke the Hyuuga girl from her thoughts and Akira quickly brought her hand away to begin drying off.

"I'll—uh, tell you when I get there!" Akira called back. She examined the shirt Hinata left and was thankful to find it was a loose fitting indigo top. With Hinata's shyness, tight clothing was not something she often wore.

Their hip sizes were similar enough, and, quite conveniently, Hinata had recently purchased a new set of underwear she had yet to wear and generously gifted a pair to Akira to save her the pain of going commando for the rest of the day.

"I have plenty!" Hinata had reasoned, and Akira was not one to refuse another's kindness, especially in this case. Although one detail that vastly differed between them was their bust size. Even with her pregnancy, Akira was a B cup at best. Hinata was easily a double D. A roll of bandages would have to suffice for that one.

"Everything fits perfectly, Hinata!" And thankfully, with their differing bust sizes, Hinata's shirt was especially loose, allowing even more cloth to conceal her baby bump.

"That's great, Akira-san!" Hinata smiled as Akira emerged from the bathroom, her long blonde hair wet and un-braided. The Hyuuga heiress sat on her queen-sized bed covered with pink girly-looking sheets. The look reminded her of something Misaki would own.

"Father said you and Taisou-san may stay for dinner. Unfortunately, he has work and will not be able to join us."

"Thanks." Akira complied when Hinata motioned for her to sit down on the bed beside her.

"Natsu-san said dinner will be in about an hour."

"Do you know all your servants by name? And are you always this nice to… uh, foreigners?"

Hinata smiled softly. "I try to know everyone's names. Father tells me it is pointless, but I appreciate all their work and prefer to thank them personally."

"And Neji?"

At this, she laughed. "I've never seen anyone beat Nii-san like that." Akira returned the smile, but at Hinata's next words it quickly vanished. "The first time I fought him I nearly died."

"Oh… Really?"

"It was a long time ago. Nii-san has changed a lot since then."

"Hm." He must've. Now anyone who looked so much as looked at Hinata wrongly would face the extremely protective Hyuuga's wrath.

"By the way, what did you say to him to make him freeze up like that?"

Her mind echoed,  _"Hinata's dating Naruto!"_

"Nothing of importance. Just nonsense, really."

An hour later, Akira learned several interesting things about the Hyuugas. When Hinata was young, Hanabi had initially been Hiashi's choice as the clan's heir, but, after Hinata finally proved herself in another fight, she regained her rightful title. Even earlier, Neji's father had died as a sacrifice due to Hinata's kidnapping from Kumogakure when she was three. Hizashi, Neji's father, had intercepted her kidnapper and killed the man, but Kumo had demanded compensation for their shinobi's death, leading to Neji's early resentment of the Main Branch and specifically Hinata herself.

However, upon a certain spikey haired blonde's inspiration (and also him beating Neji during their first chuunin exams), Neji had reformed his ways and grown to understand his father's sacrifice. Since then, she and Neji had become close.

Akira could especially tell, just by the way Hinata talked about Naruto, that she held special feelings for the boy—Akira's initial instincts had been correct. He was her inspiration, her drive—and that Akira could understand.

"What about Hanabi?"

Hinata's lips twisted as wryly. "We've never been close. Hanabi has always been to herself. She's far more of a prodigy than I ever was, but not quite at Nii-san's level, either. To be honest, I don't know much about her. Every time I try, I just…" Hinata tapped her index fingers together. "I just… seem to get in the way again. She'll cheer for Nii-san, but I don't think she's close to him, either."

Akira placed a friendly hand on the girl's shoulder. "I think she'll come around eventually. Just give it time."

Just then, a knock sounded on the heiress's door, and Akira recognized the voice as Natsu's.

"Hinata-sama," the voice outside the door said, "dinner is ready. Taisou-sama and Neji-sama are waiting in the parlor."

"Coming!" Hinata called. She turned back to Akira. "She'll be going to Hanabi's room next. Ready for dinner?"

Akira nodded, her empty stomach agreeing full-heartedly. "Always."

Dinner was interesting, to say in the least. The food was wonderful and fancier than anything she'd eaten before. Hiashi's absence turned out to be beneficial more than anything, but Neji remained stiff and curt with her, despite her attempts to lighten the mood. She asked about recent events in Konoha and inquired about their various teammates and senseis and honestly anything else she could think of.

Hinata laughed. Even Hanabi cracked a few smiles and made some snarky remarks. Taisou asked Akira about her own teammates and the people back in her village, making her feel especially nostalgic.

"Your friend Saito sounds like he would get along well with Tenten, especially being the son of the weapons shop owner," Taisou remarked.

Akira chuckled. "Yes, he probably would." She had left out the part about him being a former suitor of hers, and rather described him as, "persistent in the things he set his mind to."

"Neji's Gai-sensei sounds like quite a character, as well."

Everyone but Neji snickered at this, but she did earn a subtle eye roll from him.

"Putting it lightly," Taisou said.

By the time dinner finished, it was very dark outside.

"I would hate for you to have to walk back all the way in the dark. Especially in a place you've just come to," Taisou remarked.

"I'll be fine, Uncle," Akira assured, but the Hyuuga sisters thought differently.

"Why don't you stay the night?" Hinata suggested. "The hokage's tower is close enough that it shouldn't be much longer than your usual trek. And you could have breakfast with us!"

The idea of an actual breakfast especially interested her, but it was not until Hanabi's words that she finally agreed.

"Yes. Please, stay with us tonight."

Everyone but Neji seemed excited at the idea, but, despite the Hyuuga prodigy, she said, "All right then. As long as it's not too much trouble."

Taisou said his goodbyes to the family, and, for the first time in what Akira guessed was a very long while, Hinata and Hanabi shared a space in Hinata's room. With Hinata's queen-sized bed, the three of them fit easily, even sprawled out as they were.

"You have such pretty hair, Akira-san," Hanabi remarked as she ran a brush through the Hyuuga girl's silky tresses. "Hardly anyone here is blonde, and certainly not this color."

Hanabi's fingers clumsily separated her hair into three sections to form a braid. Clearly there was a reason Hanabi always wore her hair down, but Akira didn't mind in the slightest. In their little line, Akira sat near the edge of the bed with Hanabi brushing her hair and Hinata sat behind Hanabi doing the same.

"It may be dark, but you have beautiful hair as well, Hanabi," Hinata said softly.

"Still, none of us can quite beat Neji," Hanabi remarked, to which Akira burst out laughing.

The three of them talked and brushed and ate candy together. Apparently, the Hyuuga kitchen was well-stocked with sweets, and the three kunoichi did not have a hard time breaking in.

"Natsu-san remembered to buy the chocolates!" Hinata exclaimed as Akira examined their loot of candies and ramune soda. According to Hinata, if Hiashi found them, he would give them all a good scolding, but as far as Akira was concerned, they were old enough to have a little fun.

It was long past midnight before any of them fell asleep. But relaxed, sugar-high and with all of their hair braided and styled, Hinata was the first to fall asleep, and Hanabi, who found she quite enjoyed using her sister's breasts as a pillow, soon followed.

Once she was positive the girls were both fast asleep, Akira moved to turn out the light. Then, curling up beside the sleeping Hyuuga sisters, Akira managed to do the same, but not for long. Two hours later, Akira jolted awake, her body covered in a cold sweat. Itachi's mangled face flashed through her head, then Deidara, her parents, Tobi, and even Sasuke, as briefly as she'd seen him—another nightmare of so many faces and so much to be afraid of. She could smell the carnage and taste the blood on her lips.

She stumbled out of the bed in time to notice her clothes from earlier laid out on a chair by one of the servants next to Hinata's desk, where Akira had also left her shoulder bag. They must have come in while they were all sleeping.

Akira glanced at the clock on Hinata's nightstand. It was past three in the morning.

Akira quietly changed back into her original clothes, carefully folding the pants and indigo top on the chair where her outfit had previously laid. Then, in the dark, she set to work on smoothing out her hair and re-braiding it back into its usual style.

By the time she finished, Akira felt no hope of going back to sleep. It was too early to go home without being caught or suspected of something treacherous, and, besides, Hinata had promised breakfast, which was not something Akira often had. The morning sickness was beginning to ebb away at this point, and Akira hoped it would continue to not come again, especially this morning.

"Who would've thought living in Konoha would turn me into an insomniac," Akira grumbled, secretly thankful her words hadn't woken Hinata or Hanabi.

In an attempt to clear her head, Akira slipped out of the room to take a walk around the premise. The Hyuuga mansion was big and beautiful, but somehow Akira found herself back at the training grounds where she had beaten Neji.

With a sigh, Akira plopped to the ground on the wooden porch and sat admiring how the moon reflected on the stillness of the koi pond. Akira reached for the necklace tucked beneath her shirt without thinking. The smooth red surface soothed her fingertips as she once again traced the black kanji for "fire."

Thoughts of Itachi consumed her mind, and, with little motivation to stop, Akira thought back to one of her times at Akatsuki.

_"This looks like a good place to take a break," Kisame said as he gazed at the field of Sakura trees. It was a nice day out: the sun shone brightly, and the sky was blue and full of fluffy white clouds._

_"Hn." Itachi continued looking ahead with his usual blank stare. He, Akira, and Kisame had just finished a mission and were headed back to Akatsuki. Beyond having earned the uniform she wore at this point, Akira had once again done a fabulous job of ensuring their mission went more smoothly than intended._

_"It's a really nice day out," Akira spoke what both men were thinking as she shielded her eyes from the dazzling sun with her hand._

_The three of them settled beneath one of the flowering pink trees, and Akira brought out three handkerchief-wrapped bentos from her bag._

_"I knew these would come in handy!" the Hyuuga girl grinned._

_Itachi looked away while Kisame quickly snatched his._

_"I'll let you two have some time alone." Akira noticed him bring something out of his uniform that resembled a sake bottle and a wine cup._

_Akira let out a sigh. "Don't have too much, okay?"_

_"Have fun," Kisame didn't bother turning around around to speak before he walked away toward a different tree._

_"I hope he doesn't get too drunk," Akira remarked to Itachi, who was comfortably reclined under the Sakura tree._

_"I'm not carrying him back," Itachi said in what Akira could tell was a sleepy tone. Although he merely looked relaxed, his eyes were closed._

_"I have a bento for you whenever you want it," Akira reminded, but Itachi hadn't heard her._

_He was already asleep. She smiled lovingly at the sight._

_His usual stoic look had dropped in his sleep. It was much too early to be able to tell for sure, but he didn't seem to be having a nightmare. She waited a few minutes before moving Itachi from his sitting position onto her far more comfortable lap._

_Akira smiled contentedly as she watched the cherry blossoms dance through the air while her fingers absentmindedly toyed with Itachi's hair. A stray petal drifted toward them and landed on Itachi's forehead protector. She brushed the petal away and allowed her hand to linger on his face as more petals rained down upon them. In the distance, she noticed Kisame help himself to another cup of sake._

_A part of her worried that Itachi would be displeased with her for acting like this with Kisame around, but a bigger part of her didn't care. Itachi needed his sleep and, at this rate, Kisame would be too intoxicated to remember anything properly._

_Time passed. However long, Akira didn't know, but the sun had noticeably changed positions and the air was growing colder. Kisame noticed it, too, because within minutes, the shark staggered to his feet and stumbled over to them. Even from several feet away, Akira could smell alcohol on his breath._

_"Are you going to wake him up yet?" Kisame went back to his usual moody self as he handed her his empty bento box._

_"He didn't sleep well last night, so give him a few minutes." Akira did her best not to move the lower half of her body as she replaced the empty box back into her travel bag._

_"And how would you know that?" His tone was teasing; Akira rolled her eyes._

_"I told you before it's not like that." The color on her cheeks begged to differ. "He kept tossing and turning. It annoyed the hell out of me."_

_"Whatever." Kisame dropped the argument and plopped down beside her on the grass. His sake bottle was empty. "How much longer are you gonna give him?"_

_"Until he wakes up."_

_"Oi… you don't know how long that's going to be."_

_"Then you best get comfortable." Akira grinned. Knowing it best not to fight with her, Kisame complied and, in his drunken stupor, soon dozed off himself._

_For the next few minutes, it was just Akira and the two sleeping Akatsuki. However, Itachi awoke within the hour, thankfully before Kisame. As if he heard something alarming, the Uchiha's eyes shot open and a second later, he sat up. He glanced at Kisame sleeping beside them, and then turned back to Akira._

_He stared back at her with glazed black irises. In the least, he wasn't angry._

_No words were needed as Itachi and Akira's fingers intertwined, mostly concealed by the bagginess of their uniform sleeves. Akira rested her head on Itachi's shoulder. The sun was setting and they watched it together with quiet smiles._

_As soon as the area darkened, Kisame stirred, snorting something about "Salted dumplings" before jolting awoke himself. Itachi and Akira's hands discreetly separated and the three of them, rested as they were ever going to be, stood up to continue back to Akatsuki._

_"Dammit, Itachi, if you were so tired, you should have said something!" Kisame said, his words still slightly slurred as they walked._

_Akira shifted uncomfortably, but Itachi calmly replied, "I suppose I was more tired than I thought."_

_Having no reply, Kisame shrugged, and, while Akira concealed herself beneath the curtains of their Akatsuki hats. Kisame and Itachi followed her lead and they continued the rest of the journey in silence._

Akira's mind slowly transitioned back to reality as the memory faded. A tear slipped down her cheek, but the grief was short-lived.

"What are you doing up at this hour?" Akira jumped when she heard a deep male voice. Hastily, she wiped away the tear and whipped her head to see Neji leaning against one of the support beams beside them.

Once the initial shock faded, she smiled softly. Somehow, she wasn't surprised he managed to sneak up on her.

"I can't sleep," Akira admitted, looking up to meet his matching lavender gaze. "I'm not a spy, I promise." The secrets of the Hyuuga compound were the last thing she was after.

"That's exactly what a spy would say," Neji countered, to which Akira chuckled. By now, he had figured out her words, although likely to happen later, were currently untrue.

_"Hinata's dating Naruto!"_

Ah well. She'd won.

"Interesting necklace." Akira jumped for a second time when she realized she had yet to tuck the pendant back into her clothes. "Where did you get something like that?"

At this, Akira's expression fell, and Neji inferred enough. For whatever reason, he sat down beside her on the porch. Akira didn't know what possessed her to say what she did next.

"Someone very important to me. He died." And with that, she replaced the necklace inside her shirt.

"Someone from the fire country?"

Akira nodded.

"Your father?"

Akira shook her head. "He wasn't related to me. My parents are dead."

"Oh." Neji hadn't been around for her full introduction. Awkward silence built up between them. Nothing would have prepared Akira for Neji's next words.

"My father died, too."

Akira remembered hearing the story from Hinata, but knowing it would be better to simply allow him to talk, she remained silent and briefly nodded. "I'm sorry."

More awkward silence. More cold stares.

"Who taught you how to fight?" Neji asked, changing the subject.

"My father showed me the gentle fist and a few other of our clan's techniques. The rest I developed on my own." Kaede had helped her a great deal, and as had Itachi. She often trained with Kaname and Eri, but none of them had particularly similar fighting styles. "You fight well yourself. I did not mean my comment earlier today as an insult."

"I know." His tone begged to differ, but Akira was not about to argue. "You are correct that I do not tend to fight creatively."

"My words were just a hunch. Not entirely true, I suppose."

"Enough to get the job done."

Both of their gazes drew to the moon, and, after a few seconds, Akira's eyelids began to feel heavy again, although she initially ignored the feeling.

"Are you still mad about the training session earlier today?" May as well blurt it now. What did she have to lose?

For the first time that day, Neji's lips curved upward in a small smile.

"No," he replied. "I simply did not expect you to be that strong."

Akira returned the smile.

_I guess, if blurting rumors counts as strong._ But perhaps Neji wasn't as stoic as she initially thought.  _Just like Itachi…_  It had been either that or flashing him, which Akira knew would not earn her the greatest reputation, even if she won. Besides, spouting rumors could be just as shocking.

"I would be honored to fight you again, Akira-san."

"I would like that." As long as Hinata didn't mind sharing her training partner. Maybe the Hyuuga heiress would start training with Hanabi again after all these years.

With the tension vanished, Akira's drowsiness returned with a vengeance. After only a few more minutes of staring up at the crescent moon, her heavy eyelids closed once again.

-

Neji did not expect to feel a weight gradually rest upon his shoulder, but, as soon as he did, he realized it was Akira's head.

The Hyuuga girl's expression was peaceful—peaceful like Hinata-sama when she slept. Neji had sometimes been the one to carry the Hyuuga heiress back to her rooms during the rare times she dozed off during some of their late night conversations, but this time, it was the odd half-breed who had beaten him earlier that day.

Upon actually considering her words to him about Hinata dating Naruto, Neji knew it was false. His cousin would be more nervous than usual were that the case, but, at the time, the words had caught him completely off guard. He hadn't expected this new girl to realize such a thing and utilize it to her advantage.

Neji made no effort in hiding his affections for Hinata. The girl was kind, docile, and strong in her own way, even if her strength in fighting did not quite compare to his.

Akira was kind, but not shy, strong, mysterious and, if anything, had more in common with Haruno Sakura than any of the other kunoichi in Konoha. But Hinata and even the usually anti-social Hanabi had taken an almost immediate liking to her, and, despite his first impression of her, perhaps Neji would learn to do the same.

Besides, she was officially Taisou's heir now and therefore a Main Branch. It was Neji's duty to protect her, as well. No one could ever replace Hinata-sama, but in the least he could appreciate who Akira was as a person.

Upon confirming the Hyuuga girl was indeed fast asleep, Neji carefully repositioned himself so her head lay sideways against his shoulder before moving to scoop her legs so he could lift her. Akira barely stirred as he carried her back to Hinata's room, where Neji also sensed Hanabi.

After gently laying the Hyuuga girl down on the frilly pink bed beside Hinata and Hanabi (Neji did not require the light to know where they were), the Hyuuga prodigy carefully stepped over the clothes, accessories, and candy wrappers lining the floor and made his way out the door to return to his own room.


	33. Chapter 33

"There!" Akira winced as a set of Neji's pokes made contact with her arm, forcing her back. The Hyuuga genius continued attacking, and, with only one arm fully working, Akira had far more difficulty blocking.

Three weeks—it had been three weeks since she'd first come here, totaling to almost a full month in Konoha. By now, sparring with Neji was a regular occurrence and her schedule with Tsunade, although difficult, did not call for as many 5 a.m. lessons. Formal training now began at seven thirty in the morning, similar to what she had endured with Kaede-sensei, and although the physical aspect was far more rigorous, she still had weekends off and recently added half days on Wednesdays, which she used to train at the Hyuuga compound.

With a swipe of her healing energy, Akira reactivated her chakra points, but had to perform a quick substitution to avoid falling prey to Neji's next jutsu.

-

Hinata and Hanabi watched Akira and Neji from the porch. Hinata and Neji had already fought earlier that day, and next up Hinata and Hanabi intended to spar. Taisou, who had also become a more regular guest on Wednesdays, observed the fight from behind them. He joined in with the excuse of needing to see how his heir was progressing.

"Akira is moving slowly today," Hinata said quietly.

"Maybe she's tired from training with Tsunade." Hanabi shrugged.

"No, something's off." Hinata activated her own byakugan and more carefully observed the two. "Something is strange about Akira-san's chakra. I didn't really notice it until now."

She couldn't seem to focus long enough to get a good look, but less than a minute later, one of Neji's strikes hit Akira squarely in the chin, almost mirroring what had happened during their first fight.

The trio was equally surprised at the sudden hit, but even more so when Akira collapsed to the ground in a cloud of dust.

"Akira-san!" By the time Hinata and Hanabi jumped to their feet, Taisou was already sprinting toward Neji and Akira.

"She's breathing." Neji cradled the Hyuuga girl's body; two fingers touched the side of her neck. "Her pulse is shallower than usual."

"Is she alright?" Hanabi inquired, clearly concerned. None of them knew a great deal of medical ninjutsu, and therefore had no means of diagnosing her.

Hinata briefly thought back to the Akira's strange chakra. Reactivating her byakugan, Hinata scanned the Hyuuga girl once again.

"There's a strange chakra around her stomach area," Hinata said hesitantly. It was subtle, which made it hard to say how long that strange chakra had been there. Had she seen something like this before? "I don't know enough to say for sure."

Taking the blonde Hyuuga from Neji, Taisou placed an arm under Akira's legs and rose to his full height, his niece in his arms.

Unwilling to wait until she awoke, Taisou said, "I know someone who will."

-

Akira's eyes fluttered open, although, unlike most times when she awoke like this, her head didn't hurt all that badly.

Her stomach, however, was a completely different story. Before her vision could fully focus, Akira turned to her side, ready to puke. An unknown female held out a basin for her, which Akira gratefully used.

Several retches later, her stomach was empty and her vision focused. The female was Tsunade, and the last things she remembered was sparring with Neji at the Hyuuga compound.

"Hyuuga Akira," her new instructor's voice was commanding, even more than her first day here, "I see you're awake."

"Tsunade-sama…" Worse yet, Akira looked down to find herself wearing a hospital gown.

_This can't be good._

"You collapsed while training with Neji, was it?"

"Um, yes. He hit me, actually."

"Hm. I take it you were not feeling your best today?"

"We all have bad days." Guilt was written all over Akira's face. How could Tsunade not know? Did she just want to hear it from Akira's mouth?

At last, Tsunade spoke again. "You're four months pregnant."

Akira averted her gaze from the hokage and turned to conceal her center line.

"So that's how far along I am," she murmured.

Tsunade looked at her sternly. Even without making direct eye contact, Akira could tell.

"How long have you known?" And here began the questions she had been trying so desperately hard to avoid.

"Not long. About a week before I came here."

"Your medical records—they were falsified?"

"Not entirely." How was she supposed to explain this? As part of her conditions for the information on Akatsuki, Kaede-sensei had been careful to make it seem like, at least on paper, that Akira had been in the Whirlpool Village or away on missions for the duration of her disappearance.

"Meaning?"

"Meaning, I can't say!" She snapped more than intended, but at this point, Akira didn't care.

"You  _lied_  to a government official."

"I didn't lie. I simply did not tell you everything."

"I would say this is a pretty big detail to leave out." Tsunade's eyes narrowed further. "Did your teacher know?"

Akira shook her head slowly. "Kaede-sensei has no idea."

Tsunade sighed exasperatedly, running a manicured hand through her long blonde bangs.

"And the father? You're too far along for it to have been someone from Konoha."

"The father is not from my village, either." Akira said quietly.

"Is he—?"

"He's dead, Tsunade-sama."

Aside from the anger and traces of betrayal, the hokage's eyes filled with understanding. Akira didn't expect the sannin to let her off the hook, but in the least, she understood. News of her teammate Jiraya's death had recently spread throughout the village, and it was no secret the hokage mourned the loss of her friend. Akira had never met the man, but, judging by Tsunade's reaction and Naruto's remarks, he had been a great ninja.

"Can I have his name at least?"

Akira shook her head. "I can't."

"I know it may be painful, but—"

"It's not that, it's just…" the Hyuuga girl trained off. How could she put this into words?

"This may seem extreme, but if you do not tell me what I ask, protocol demands for me to treat you as a spy," Tsunade stated. "You have not been my student for long Akira, but I don't want to do this to you. However, if you do not give me a name, you leave me no choice."

"I…" She was running out of options. "I can't tell you here."

"Excuse me?"

"My medical files," Akira began, "they were altered slightly."

Tsunade gave her a "go on" stare.

"Truth is, I haven't lived in the Whirlpool Village for over a year."

"So where were you then?"

"Akatsuki."

-

Taisou ceased opening and closing his trademark fan to pass the time when his eye darted upward to see Tsunade stride into the waiting room, pigtails flailing out behind her. Akira was not with her.

"Is she alright?" Neji and Hinata waited with him. Hanabi had returned home to tell Hiashi where they went.

"Akira is fine, however, there are a few things you must know."

Relief washed over the three Hyuugas' faces, but Tsunade knew it would be short-lived. Seconds later, Akira emerged from the same hallway Tsunade had come from, regularly clothed and with a nurse, who left just as quickly as she'd come.

"What was wrong? A virus?" Taisou inquired.

Akira shifted nervously, her index fingers tapping together. This was a conversation she had not wanted to have for a very long time.

Growing impatient, Tsunade spoke first. "Akira's pregnant. Her due date is five months from now."

Taisou froze, Hinata gasped, and Neji attempted to meet Akira's gaze but to no avail.

"For the time being, I will require Akira in my office," Tsunade stated. "We have many things to discuss. You may all speak to her again afterwards."

-

"So," Tsunade began, interlocking her fingers in an eerily familiar way to Akira's former sensei, "this is a secure room intended solely for interrogation purposes. I assure you, no one else can hear us. Now what was this about Akatsuki?"

"Answer me this," Akira began. "You recently received a file containing information on Akatsuki. That's why you've been having so many meetings lately, correct?"

Tsunade seemed ruffled at Akira's words, but she did not deny them.

"The files talk of the members, both alive and deceased, as well as pieces of Akatsuki's goal, including Konoha's attack—"

"There has been debate on the legitimacy of this information," Tsunade cut in. "I don't know how you found out about that file, but nothing is confirmed yet."

"And the information on each of the members? Was that at all inaccurate?"

Tsunade sighed. "Admittedly, it matched the file we already possessed and even clarified a few things."

"That file does not contain everything. It was the most I could tell my teacher without having to worry about her or anyone else who reads it being killed."

"So your child's father is one of the deceased Akatsuki?" Tsunade deduced. "What did you do, sleep with him for information?"

"No." It was everything Akira could do to keep her tone steady. "I didn't do it for the information."

"So who was it then? Kakuzu, Hidan?"

"Uchiha Itachi."

The hokage's expression froze. Akira felt it wise for her to remain silent.

"Uchiha… Itachi?" the hokage repeated, her voice choked. "You slept with that traitor?!"

"Hear me out,  _hokage_ ," Akira spat the word, disgusted at what the title entailed. "There are things you do not know."

"Like what? He was just misunderstood?" Akira did not like the woman's taunting tone. "Why should I believe a foreigner like you? I should be calling Inoichi or, better yet, Ibiki right now to interrogate you!"

"You are right that I am a foreigner," Akira admitted. "I have never been to Konoha before, but explain how I know this: you're the granddaughter of the first hokage. You had a brother named Nawaki and a lover named Dan. Both died."

The hokage scoffed. "Anyone could look that up."

"Fine." She would have to use another example. "Uchiha Sasuke: his parents' names were Uchiha Fugaku, the leader of the clan, and Uchiha Mikoto, a jounin. He was once on a three man team with Uzumaki Naruto and Haruno Sakura, before he left to attain more power and training from Orochimaru, who he later killed. Also, his favorite food is tomatoes."

"You could be in cahoots with Sasuke." Understandably, the hokage remained unconvinced.

"Sasuke has only seen me once, and I assure you he does not remember me." This was it. She would have to use her trump card. Reaching for her weapons pouch, Akira detached the item from her sash and tossed it to Tsunade. She did not need the hokage thinking she was going to attack. "I only knew Itachi. My proof is in here."

With great distrust, Tsunade opened the pouch. But, after sorting through several kunai and shuriken, her eyes grew wide. Her nail painted hand reached inside the pouch and within seconds, Itachi's Akatsuki ring plunked onto the table in front of them.

"Please, hokage," Akira began, "just hear me out."

-

By the time, Akira finished, Tsunade was livid. It had taken Akira quite some time to explain, although thankfully she had been able to skip the part about Konoha's founding. Tsunade already knew about the wars, but she had not known the measures taken to prevent another one.

"So you're telling me that Danzou ordered the whole thing?" Tsunade seethed.

Akira could not tell if Tsunade was angry at her, the situation, or both. Nonetheless, she said, "Yes, although he would likely die before telling you. The third hokage did everything he could to prevent it, but in the end, nothing else could be done."

Tsunade laughed bitterly. "Here I am the hokage, and a foreign girl is telling me about the politics of my own village." She ran a hand through her bangs. "What is this world coming to?"

"Before Itachi died, he used that ring for a knowledge transfer jutus," Akira explained. "The only way for someone to leave Akatsuki's base is with one of those rings in tandem with the proper hand signs."

"And with the knowledge transfer jutsu, he indirectly taught you the hand signs," Tsunade finished, still disbelieving. "All this time…"

"You don't think I'm lying?"

"I wish you were. However, I know Danzou, and that sounds exactly like something he would do. I've often wondered where he obtained all his information on Akatsuki. Not to mention, there has always been something strange about the Uchiha massacre. Save for when it actually happened, the Third never mentioned it."

"So if you believe me, what's going to happen?"

"First, I'm confronting Danzou." Tsunade slammed her fist into her other open hand, and Akira knew that was no idle threat. "He may not wish to talk, but I will make him. The other elders, too."

"And my training?" For the first time since the revelation, Tsunade met her gaze. Akira felt a lump rise in the back of her throat.

"Given your situation, we cannot resume the prior physical intensity, which you should have known better than to do in the first place," the hokage began, her tone reprimanding. "However, there are many things I can still yet teach you. Just because you're pregnant does not mean you are useless."

"And the rest of the village? Won't it dishonor you to have this happen to the foreign student that you accepted?" The Hyuuga clan aside, Tsunade was a whole different issue.

"The village will just have to talk," Tsunade declared. Her voice softened at her next words. "It's the least I can do for a man who sacrificed so much already." Akira complied with a soft smile before Tsunade continued, "I shall require regular meetings with you to discuss Akatsuki and compare what we find to what you already know. Normally, I would simply have Inoichi read your memories, but even he cannot find out about this. If word gets out about the truth of the Uchiha massacre, the village could riot."

"That was exactly what Itachi and the Third were trying to prevent," Akira murmured, agreeing.

"No one else can know, Akira. I do not know who else you've told—"

"No one here," Akira assured, cutting in. "And certainly not Kaede-sensei."

"But," Tsunade continued, "the entire situation must retain the utmost secrecy. Call it an S ranked mission, if you will."

"You have my word, Tsunade-sama. No one else will know."

"One more thing," the hokage began, and Akira could only think,  _What else could there possibly be?_ "About your pregnancy…"

"What is it?" Akira's eyes filled with worry and without thinking both hands flew to her stomach. "Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing is wrong, I just wanted to tell you." Tsunde's expression relaxed into a warm smile. "You're not just having one child. You're having twins."

-

Akira returned that day to the Hyuuga compound ambivalent as could be.

She owed them an explanation. She owed everyone an explanation. She dreaded giving it, but, in the least, she had obtained a very powerful ally.

_Tsunade-sama… who would've thought?_ She hadn't expected their relationship to grow outside of student and teacher. The woman was still angry, undeniably, but now Akira didn't have to carry Itachi's burden here alone. At least with Tsunade, she could speak freely.

And her children—Akira could barely contain her joy. She wasn't just having one, but two! A girl and a boy, according to Tsunade. She hadn't even thought of names yet. What would she call them?

Her thoughts came to a screeching halt when she reached the Hyuuga compound. The guards, who now easily recognized her, no longer required a password for her to enter. By the time she reached the area with Taisou and Hiashi's houses, she could sense everyone's chakra still in Hiashi's house.

_Here goes nothing._

She knocked on the door. The maid named Natsu answered, but Hinata was right behind her.

"Akira-san!" The Hyuuga girl could hardly remove her shoes before the Hyuuga heiress tackled her in an embrace. Akira was beyond confused by now.

"Hinata?"

"Neji told us all about it!" Hinata's tone was pinched, as if she were about to cry. "How you had a boyfriend back home who died, and that you didn't know about his child until you came here and by then it was too late! After looking at you training this morning, I should've realized it! That 'strange chakra' was the same thing I saw with Kurenai-sensei before she told us she was pregnant with Asuma's child!"

With Hinata still clinging to her, Akira blinked several times, registering the information. She hadn't even needed to explain. A few details were off, but that saved her the trouble of lying.

"Neji told you all of that?" Had he inferred that much from that one night they talked together? The boy really was a genius.

Hinata nodded, sniffling. "We're all waiting for you in the meeting room. Even Father."

At the mention of Hiashi, Akira stiffened. He of all people was not someone she wanted to explain this to.

Things went surprisingly smoothly, all things considered. She explained a slightly elaborated version of Neji's story, although she left out the man's name considering she couldn't very well say "Uchiha Itachi." Surprisingly, no one asked. Hiashi, however, had many other questions.

"And your training with Tsunade?"

"It will be continued, albeit altered slightly," Akira replied. "I have no intention of discontinuing that if she will still take me."

Taisou's eyes softened. Likely, he was remembering his own wife.

"Mika and I could never have children," Taisou stated. "No matter how much we tried."

"And your point, Taisou?" Hiashi all but snapped.

"I do not wish to disown Akira for this. She is pregnant out of wedlock, but the father is dead. Surely, if Tsunade believes her on that detail, it must be true. I admit, it is not the most honorable of situations, but I wish to keep her and her future child as my heir."

Hiashi had no words for him, but, unable to argue, he gave a simple nod. Next, Akira spoke.

"Thank you, Uncle," Akira said, her eyes shining. "And there is another thing all of you should know."

The room went deathly silent, and, needless to say, she had their attention.

"I'm not just having one child. I'm having twins."

Just like Akira when she first found out, Taisou's eyes lit up. Hinata squealed in delight and Hanabi and Neij exchanged pleased looks, leaving Hiashi the only one expressionless.

"Two new additions to the Hyuuga clan." Taisou shook his head in joyful disbelief. "Who would've thought?"

-

"Now, Tsunade, please tell us why you have organized yet another meeting? This is the third one this week!" Koharu exclaimed.

"Yes, and where is Shizune? I thought you two were inseparable," Homura added.

The three village elders were situated on one end of a rectangular table with the fifth hokage facing them on the opposite side. The room was dimly lit and complete with seals around the only door and each of the walls to prevent intruders from listening in or sensing their chakra.

The hokage was being oddly gruff and silent, even for her. Danzou suspiciously examined the woman, his only visible eye narrowed.

"I sent Shizune out on a pointless errand. She will not be back for quite some time and by then this meeting will be finished," Tsunade declared. "However, enough with the introductions and onto business! I have received some very interesting information regarding the death of one of our village's former elite."

Homura spoke, "Orochimaru? That's old news by now."

"Uchiha Itachi."

The room fell deathly still for a moment.

"What of him? The traitor died weeks ago," Danzou stated simply.

"The circumstances surrounding his death," Tsunade began, reaching into her pocket, "were not what they seem." Just like Akira had, Tsunade plunked Itachi's ring onto the table in front of the three elders. Koharu gasped and Homura looked away guiltily. Only Danzou met Tsunade's gaze with equal intensity.

"So you have his Akatsuki ring," Danzou said, his tone nonchalant. "This proves nothing."

"I know you three psychopaths ordered a thirteen-year-old boy to slaughter his entire clan."

"I reiterate, you have no proof."

"I have a source. However, you may not go near her."

"Your latest student?"

Tsunade stopped abruptly, her mouth already open to speak. Danzou chuckled.

So he had been correct.

"There was talk of an additional member of Akatsuki a while back," the elder began. "A blonde woman matching Akira's description, who possessed healing abilities."

"There are many healers matching that description," Tsunade argued.

"But how many with the byakugan? Surely, Tsunade, we are as stupid as you think." Homura and Koharu had been unaware of the irony behind Tsunade's latest student, but soon enough they would catch on. "Somehow, it does not surprise me that she earned the favor of Uchiha Itachi."

"You and your filthy goons from ROOT will not lay a hand on her!"

"I never said anything about that."

"I know you well enough, Danzou," Tsunade seethed. "As if the Uchiha massacre wasn't bad enough. I've seen you ruin enough innocent lives!"

"The Uchiha clan was hardly innocent, if you honestly do know the truth."

"I'm aware of that, but there are countless others your filthy hands have sullied. Akira is under my protection. You stay the hell away from her!"

"Raising your voice, Tsunade-sama, hardly does any good to prove your point." Danzou's tone was, of course, even. "If she truly is your contact, then I would kindly recommend she watch her back. As we all know only too well, the ninja world is neither a friendly nor forgiving place."


	34. Chapter 34

"So, you're Hyuuga Akira, then?" Umino Iruka raised his left eyebrow questioningly as he read the name at the top of the sheet Akira offered him. "And you're here to do what now?"

"Tsunade instructed me to spend a portion of my training as an assistant teacher at the academy," Akira replied, smiling. "It should all be there."

"Let's see… training… assistant teacher, demonstrations in healing…" Iruka's eyes scanned the sheet until they reached the signature at the bottom. Undeniably, it was Tsunade's.

Akira stood patiently, hands gathered at her side as she waited for him to finish.

"Anko mentioned something about a potential assistant from Tsunade, but I didn't think this was what quite she meant."

"Am I missing anything?" Akira questioned as Iruka's shuffled through the rest of the paperwork.

It was early in the morning, easily half an hour before classes were scheduled to begin. It was hard to believe that only three days ago her secret had been found out, and, not only that, Itachi's, as well. However, the hokage had promised to do everything in her power to keep Akira and her children safe, and what better place than the academy, which was annexed to the hokage tower, to gain experience with children whilst keeping up her skills?

"Besides," Tsunade had said, "it's one thing to know something. It's another matter entirely to teach it. Call it an internship."

"No, you're good to go," Iruka said, re-stacking the papers on a nearby desk before filing it away in one of the top drawers. "Guess I'll introduce you to the rest of the team, then."

He led her out of the classroom and down the hallway toward a door labeled "staff only."

The faculty room had five other people other than Iruka and her. The room was furnished with a refrigerator, coffee maker, and a tray full of delicious-looking snacks on the table where everyone sat in the middle of the room.

"So this is the new girl I've heard talk about." A robust man with a bandanna style hitiate, short cropped brown hair and a goatee was the first to speak as she entered the room. He was about as intimidating as a box of kittens when he smiled at Akira, brown eyes twinkling. "I'm Funeo Daikoku. I teach village history."

Itachi's memories told her about this man—he had been both Sasuke and Itachi's academy teacher at one point, and was, according to Itachi, nothing but helpful.

"I'm Rock Lee!" A rather strangely dressed boy closer to Naruto's age smiled enthusiastically at her with a simultaneously thumbs up while his other hand held a mug of what Akira prayed was tea and not coffee. With his bombastic personality, clearly, he did not require the caffeine. "Nice to meet you! I'm the new assistant teacher for Iruka-sensei's taijutsu class."

His dark hair was cut in a bowl-shaped style and the green jumpsuit and orange leg warmers he wore eerily reminded her the telltale outfits Neji had described for his sensei and his oddly look-alike-but-not-actually-related student who was Neji's teammate.

"Nice to meet you, too." Akira bowed to them before the next three introduced themselves.

"Suzume." One of two other women in the room, this lady was also far from intimidating, but not quite in the soft way that Daikoku had. With shoulder length wavy black hair, oval-shaped glasses and ruby lips, she donned a light pink kimono and the standard leaf hitiate on her forehead. She bore the air of a self-conscious type. "I teach spy tactics for girls."

"Mitarashi Anko." The next woman was Suzume's complete opposite with wild, dark blue hair drawn back in a messy ponytail and brown pupil-less eyes. Even with her high collared tan overcoat, the woman's light brown miniskirt and otherwise fishnet-comprised outfit gave her a far more confident air than her coworker Suzume. "I teach ninjutsu and specialized weaponry to the older kids."

This was the woman she would be assisting. Akira counted what little luck she had that she would be working with Anko and not Suzume. The latter's personality would likely drive her insane if not taken in small doses. On that thought, Akira turned to the last person she didn't know.

"Fukami Makoto. I'm Daikoku's teaching assistant." Age-wise, he was closest to her, although likely just a bit older. Itachi's memory held no recollection of this man, but from one look Akira knew he was a sweet person who loved where he was and what he did. Just by the soft way he spoke, it was clear he had purposely waited to introduce himself for the sake of being polite. He was not as outwardly friendly as Daikoku and especially not Anko, but his hazel eyes were full of depth and, most of all, kind.

Like two of his other coworkers, his hair was also brown but lighter than Daikoku's and length-wise, it reached past his ears. He fashioned his hitiate as a bandana and, like Kakashi, he wore fingerless gloves with a metal plate bearing the leaf village's symbol. All faculty except the women wore olive green flak jackets and dark blue uniforms with the standard red swirl on either arm.

"I have another assistant coming in for the day named Konohamaru to help with a demonstration, but he's a volunteer and probably won't be here until just before class starts," Iruka added. "If he doesn't show, I may ask you to stick around my class for a bit, but otherwise, you'll be Anko's assistant."

With that, Iruka pulled up two more chairs to the table and first offered one to Akira. "Feel free to have a seat. Classes don't start for another twenty minutes."

Akira obliged, and Anko motioned to the coffee pot. "Feel free to grab a mug and have some."

Akira politely declined the coffee and opted for a stick of dango instead, which Anko openly commended her for.

"See, I'm not the only one!"

"Anko, you eat more dango than anyone else I know," Iruka said, sweat-dropping.

"It's very unhealthy! You should really eat more vegetables!" Suzume added, straightening her glasses.

Shrugging off the entire situation, Akira reached for another dango. She was pregnant and gaining weight, either way. Thankfully, though, Tsunade had not included that detail about her health in the profile Akira had handed to Iruka. The hokage trusted her enough to tell them in her own time, which would hopefully be much later.

As Iruka anticipated, the last shinobi in their party by the name of Konohamaru showed up just in time. He was younger than Akira expected, and, although he had dark hair and brown eyes, the way he talked and moved reminded her greatly of Naruto.

"Sorry, I'm late, Iruka-sensei!" Konohamaru apologized, nervously scratching the back of his head.

"Hmf. If you really want to be the future hokage, you should learn to be on time," Iruka remarked. Whatever he said beyond that, Akira wasn't paying attention. She could not help but notice the odd look Konohamaru gave her.

"Who's the lady?" he asked, pointing at Akira.

Iruka stopped short, not even bothering to finish his sentence. Akira smiled nervously.

"I'm Hyuuga Akira, Anko's new assistant teacher."

"Hyuuga? You're blonde!" Konohamaru retorted, still pointing.

"Er… half Hyuuga, I suppose," Akira added, not taking offense, although Iruka did.

"Konohamaru, it's rude to point. Akira is Tsunade's latest apprentice from the Whirlpool Village. She's only here temporarily. Had you been here when I asked, you would know that already!"

"Hfm." Konohamaru looked away in annoyance, but, ignoring him, Iruka turned back to Akira.

"Anko should be ready for you now. Thanks for waiting with me for Konohamaru to arrive. I have to start class now."

"Wait, you were keeping her here in case I didn't show up?!"

On that note, Akira slipped out of the room to join Anko two classrooms over.

Like the room she had just come from, this place was complete was a teacher's desk in the front of the room, a chalkboard on the front wall and layered desks for the students.

"Ah, so the little twerp showed up after all, huh?" Anko remarked as Akira walked in. The dark-haired teacher twirled a kunai in one hand and held a book in the other. Most of her class, a mass of roughly thirty eleven and twelve year olds, were already here and talking among themselves.

"Guess so."

Turning her attention to the students, Anko clapped her hands to get their attention. One student, a brown-haired boy with a bandage across his nose, continued talking nonetheless, and, without batting an eye, Anko catapulted the kunai she had been twirling perfectly into the space between the boy's fingers.

He stopped talking.

"All right then," Anko began, ushering Akira to the front of the classroom, "let's begin, shall we?"

The students' attention turned to Akira.

"This is Miss Akira. She'll be joining us for a while as my assistant."

"Pleased to meet you all." Akira bowed.

"Sensei," a girl in the front row raised her hand, "isn't she Tsunade-sama's latest apprentice?"

Akira's cheeks flushed slightly at the mention and the children once again began talking amongst themselves.

"Quiet down!" Anko barked, menacingly holding out another kunai. They obeyed.

"Yes, she is under Tsunade tutelage," Anko said, "and now she will be spending her time over here teaching the rest of you brats the basics of healing ninjutsu."

Several excited whispered were exchanged, especially amid the girls.

"Most ninja have to wait at least until they graduate before they get introduced to medical ninjutsu!" she heard one of them say.

"But first," Anko cut in, "as I'm sure all of you were practicing  _very_  hard over the weekend, we'll start with a recap from Friday."

Several groans resounded, and the lecture commenced.

Akira watched as Anko lined up the children at the front of the room and observed each one as he or she formed the tiger seal, calling out in high-pitched, squeaky voices, "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Some succeeded. Although more commonly, others didn't.

The academy was divided into four sections of children ages 5-6, 7-8, 9-10 and 11-12, the last of which Anko worked with. By the time a child was around twelve years old, he or she was expected to have graduated or be graduating the ninja academy. Sometimes, children would excel and graduate early, and others would be either held back or dropped from the program all together, hence the age gaps. Most of the time, though, children graduated within four years.

"Come on, you're going to have to do better than that if you want Iruka-sensei to pass you come exam day!" Anko declared. Struggling was the same brown-haired boy from earlier with the bandage across his nose. The "clone" he produced was nothing more than a corpse-looking thing on the ground.

More shakily than the girl before him, the boy reformed the hand sign.

"K-kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

He still failed miserably, unable to even produce an illusion of anything this time, save for a useless puff of smoke. As bewilderment and embarrassment overtook him, Akira advanced a few steps toward them while Anko continued her berating.

"Anko, you're scaring him," Akira said without thinking, and, just as the words left her mouth, she covered it with a smile. She turned to the boy. "Try one more time?"

His stared at her in awe, and, much more calmly this time, formed the hand sign.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

This time, his shadow clone was actually standing and stared back at them with an expression that didn't look completely dead.

"Fourth time's a charm, I guess." Anko muttered, moving on to the next child.

Akira offered the boy one more smile and retook her place a few steps back.

The day continued on about the same as those first few minutes, and only at the very end of class did Anko seem to recall why Akira had come in the first place.

"Alright now, class, Akira is going to teach you some healing ninjutsu." Completely without transition, all eyes turned to Akira. Mentally forcing herself to stay calm, Akira walked to the front of the classroom where the chalk board was.

"Healing chakra," Akira began, "has everything to do with intent…"

For the first half, she practically parroted everything she remembered Kaede-sensei telling her on her first day. The children listening intently, and every so often one or two would offer her a question. Nothing mind boggling, but Akira could not help but flush at the adoring way some of them looked at her.

_So this is why some people become teachers._ It was only her first day, and she hoped the students didn't notice her shaking from a distance, but she was already playing a hand in possibly shaping some of their lives for the medical field.

As a visual example, she held up her right hand and activated her regular blue chakra. Then, as her intent changed, it glowed green instead. The children ooed and ahed in amazement, but just before she could line them up to try themselves, her time was up.

"All right kids, class is over. Remember to practice your Shadow Clones!"

_And be nice to your parents!_ Akira wanted to add. But, considering some of the children probably lacked parents, like she had, Akira held her tongue.

"Well, the kids certainly seem to like you," Anko remarked once all of them were gone. She stacked a mass of homework papers she had collected at the beginning of class after the jutsu practice on her desk. "You ever done anything like this before?"

"No. Just typical class and field training."

"Not bad for a newbie." Anko tucked the papers under an arm. "I wonder how Iruka's demonstration went."

On their way to the filing room, Anko and Akira stopped by Iruka's classroom, which was also empty save for him and Konohamaru.

"How went the demonstration?" Anko said with a playful smirk.

Konohamaru grimaced, but Iruka smiled.

"Well enough," he replied. "How was Akira's first day?"

Anko snickered as if she'd forgotten Akira stood behind her. "This whole 'assistant' thing is going to take some getting used to, but overall, I can't complain. The kids seem to like her and she's no pushover when it comes to book knowledge on healing."

"How long until your aunt comes to get you?" Iruka turned back to Konohamaru, who looked away.

"Any minute now. I don't know why my parents insisted on her coming to get me! I'm not a little kid, anymore!"

Ignoring the preteen, Iruka turned back to Akira. "Normally I'd ask Lee to do this, but he's off dislodging weapons from the targets of our last marksmanship practice. Do you mind waiting with Konohamaru until Kurenai comes?"

"Sure." What was one bratty kid compared to a whole classroom? She could handle this much.

She and Konohamaru waited by the entrance and watched as Suzume supervised the other children while their parents came one by one to pick them up. Akira didn't recognize most of the villagers, but a few of them stole not-so-subtle-glances at her and whispered. She prayed their whispers were about her new job and not the ever-so-subtle bump in her tummy.

"I still don't understand why people feel the need to treat me like a kid," Konohamaru finally said, hands folded behind his head. He was clearly still annoyed.

"Maybe they just want to make sure nothing happens to you," Akira offered, to which Konohamaru snorted.

"Right. My parents who barely talk to me when I'm at home—why in the world would they be concerned for my well-being?"

Before Akira could question further, a dark-haired woman in a red dress with subtle makeup and brilliant crimson eyes approached them. Like Akira, she was pregnant, but noticeably much farther along.

"Hey, Auntie Kurenai!" Konohamaru greeted her with a more cheerful tone than he'd used all day.

"Hello." Kurenai's eyes fell on Akira, who smiled nervously and offered the woman a friendly wave. "I'm Hyuuga Akira. I'm a new assistant teacher at the academy."

"Anko mentioned something about a potential new assistant," Kurenai said, and Akira found her tone to be soft and even-tempered. If memory served, this was also Hinata's sensei who, unlike her, was currently on maternal leave. "Pleased to meet you."

The woman's eyes were sad. There was a reason she had come alone. Somehow, Akira just knew.

"Well, see ya later, Akira-san." Konohamaru's voice returned to its usual deadpan. "Hopefully, Iruka-sensei won't ask me in for another demonstration for a while."

Akira watched as the two walked out of sight. Konohamaru chatted idly with his aunt, unlike at the academy where he just complained. Unlike the way Konohamaru described his parents, Kureani smiled softly and paid attention.

Maybe one day that would be her. She would never have a niece or a nephew, but what would her twins be like? What would they look like at Konohamaru's age?

"Akira-san!" A voice broke the Hyuuga girl out of her thoughts. She turned to see Daikoku and Makoto standing in the hallway behind her.

"Shouldn't you be helping Anko?" Daikoku's tone was teasing. In reply, Akira smiled mischeviously, playing along.

"I think she's a little busy ensuring Lee puts back all the kunai properly. Better go check on them just to be sure, though." And with that, she headed back into the academy.

Unsurprisingly, Anko had finished most of her duties, and Lee, as Akira anticipated, was reorganizing the kunai and shuriken into their respective boxes near Iruka's supply closet.

"Ah, Akira-san!" Lee's eyes darted in the Hyuuga girl's direction as soon as she entered the room. The boy was still in his exercise clothes from their last taijutsu class. Anko meanwhile didn't bother looking up. "How was your first day?"

"Went off without any major hitch," she replied. "Anything I can help with?"

"Grade these papers for me." Her words were more of a command than a question as she held up the stack she had previously been organizing. "Kurenai and I are going out later tonight and parents are going to have my head if these don't get in on time. The answer key is attached."

_Hm, extortion already._ Nonetheless, she said, "Sure," and stepped forward to take the stack from Anko.

"Thanks. Just make sure to grade in red. Green is acceptable, too, but not preferred."

Akira made a mental note to purchase some red pens on her way home. Ten minutes later, upon ensuring that there was absolutely nothing else she could do to help, Akira did just that and headed back to her apartment.

Grading the forty-plus multi-paged homework papers kept her up late, but, honestly, Akira didn't mind. It was refreshing to see the innocent, albeit messy handwriting of a child, even if she didn't know most of them well yet. Not to mention, it allowed a way to occupy her mind throughout the night before she collapsed onto her bed, tired, but not nearly as tired as some of Tsunade's training sessions had made her feel.

As Akira's days at the academy continued, she gradually grew more and more comfortable in her assistant teaching position. As Anko said, the children liked her, and, although she did not possess the same skill and experience as Anko, a special jounin, she was much kinder and far more sensitive, which had its advantages both with the students and their parents.

Her first meeting with Tsunade happened at the end of the week, in which the hokage inquired about her progress and checked that with the report Anko gave her. Although she had never considered teaching her calling, Akira had nothing bad to say about it. Their discussion regarding Akatsuki was brief, but Akira knew this was only the beginning.

By her second week, the other teachers grew to accept her more and, on occasion, would even ask her to run little errands for them when Lee or Makoto wasn't around. Teaching was still extremely nerve-wracking for her, but she grew to enjoy those mornings before classes where the teachers commiserated around the faculty room table and dined on snacks and freshly-made coffee, which Akira always politely refused.

One morning, for whatever reason, while the other teachers were off running errands and copying papers, Anko finally inquired why.

"Coffee?" Anko inquired, as if it were ritual by now.

As always, Akira replied, "No, thank you."

"You must really not like the stuff," Anko remarked, pouring herself a second cup. "Even Ibiki can stomach it with enough sugar and cream."

"It's not that I don't like it."

"What are you, pregnant?"

Akira knew Anko was being facetious, but, simply because she felt it was time, Akira said, "Yes."

Her superior froze, nearly dropping the coffee pot. She turned back to Akira with an odd look on her face.

"Fucking hell. Seriously?"

Akira nodded and took a sip from her water bottle. "Almost four months now. That's why Tsunade-sama moved me to the academy."

"This whole time?"

"Yes."

"And you didn't think to mention that?!"

"You never asked." Akira knew she was sounding extremely difficult, but it was true. Anko had never asked her any overly personal questions, and the baggy clothes had done the rest.

"Have you told anyone else?"

"No one here."

"Wow. Can't believe I missed that," Anko remarked, readjusting her grip on the coffee pot to continue pouring before she retook her seat at the table across from Akira. "And you're four months along?"

"Yes." After her third time saying the word, Akira pulled the material of her shirt taunt so that Anko could clearly see the growing bump. A worried look crossed the Hyuuga girl's face. "Is this a problem?"

"No, just… wow. Some guy back at your village?"

"Not exactly." Akira looked away, not wanting to make eye contact with Anko for fear of her noticing the glassy look in Akira's eyes. "He died." By now, she should be used to this explanation.

"Aa."

The room went silent. Then both of them sensed a familiar presence at the door.

"Daikoku!" Anko snapped, and the chuunin listening in was so startled that he spilled his cup of overly sweetened coffee on himself. Sheepishly, he opened the door and poked his rounded head back into the room.

"Well, I guess that makes two of you who know." Akira laughed nervously.

"Know what?" All three of them jumped as Iruka and Makoto came back in, followed soon by Rock Lee. The three of them looked expectantly at the other three, and this time Anko spoke.

"Akira's pregnant. Has been this whole time."

The jaw drops were priceless, all things considered.

Iruka completely dropped his Styrofoam coffee cup which split upon impact with the floor, spilling the cream-colored liquid all over the tiles. Makoto quickly retrieved a towel to wipe up the coffee, and, while Suzume rushed in to see what all the commotion was about, Rock Lee broke out into a jovial grin.

"That is wonderful, Akira-san!" the boy exclaimed, rushing forward to grab her hands. "What's it going to be, a youthful young boy or a beautiful young lady also filled with YOOOUTH!"

Slightly taken aback, albeit grateful at the boy's reaction, Akira extricated her hands and smiled softly.

"Both. I'm having twins."

"Does Tsunade know?" Iruka inquired, regaining his composure. By now, Suzume had caught on to the situation and glanced at Akira with a raised eyebrow, but said nothing.

"She was the first in Konoha to know." She let them think what they would of that phrase. In the least, it was true. "I'm still fully capable of teaching. I hope your opinion of that has not changed."

"Of course not. You're not the first female academy teacher for this to happen to," Iruka stated, rubbing his temples. "And your due date?"

"November." This whole thing was going a lot more smoothly than she'd anticipated. But, then again, it was much less devastating for the village to find out this way with her in a teaching position. Tsunade-sama had anticipated that much.

"You know what this calls for, right?" Akira looked quizzically at Anko. "A baby shower!"

The rest of Akira's day at the academy felt like a blur beyond that morning in the teacher's lounge. They had all taken it surprisingly well. No one pestered her with questions on who the father was, even. They had just taken her word that he was dead.

She returned home that night tired, but high in spirits. She stopped by the market to do some grocery shopping and ran into Haruno Sakura, which resulted in her staying longer than intended to talk for a bit. By the time she arrived back at the apartment, it was evening.

Half-asleep, Akira carried in her groceries. However, just as she climbed the last flight of stairs and approached her room, she sensed something strange as she turned the key to open the door. Out of habit, Akira set aside her shopping backs and activated her byakugan.

She couldn't believe her eyes.  _Those chakra…_

Akira turned on the light, still not believing it. And, just as she did, two familiar voices yelled and whispered the word, "Surprise!"

It was Kaname and Eri.


	35. Chapter 35

"Eri? Kaname?" Akira could hardly contain her shock as her brain registered the information. "You're in Konoha?!"

"We came to visit you," Eri explained, smiling as she did so. "Kaede-sensei worked out a deal with the hokage."

Not knowing what else to do, Akira stepped forward to embrace them, starting with Kaname. On Eri, she paused, realizing something before a small cry off to the side confirmed her suspicion.

"Kaname! I told you not to yell!" Eri all but hissed.

Said kunoichi nervously scratched the back of her head. "Sorry! I'm still getting used to this."

After quickly retrieving her groceries outside the door and dropping them off in the kitchen, Akira tiptoed to the cradle next to the couch where Eri already stood. A muffled gasp escaped Akira's mouth, which she made sure to muffle with her hands.

This was Eri's baby.

"There's my little boy," Eri smiled softly as she lifted the child from the cradle. He slumped against the dark-haired kunoichi's shoulder. As she rocked him, Eri turned just slightly enough for Akira to fully assess the boy's features.

Bright blue eyes were half lidded and soft blonde hair crowned his tiny head. Reaching out a hand to stroke said hair, Akira found the child's skin to be just as soft as she moved down to his adorably chubby cheeks.

"His name is Riku." Eri murmured. "Born July fifteenth." He was barely three weeks old.

Akira stared at the child in silent wonder. Her emotions only increased as Riku's bright blue eyes met her lavender ones, and, in a slurred motion, he reached out to grip her index finger. However, before she could comment, a slight pinch surprised her.

"Itai!" Instinctively, Akira pulled back her hand. Riku protested the sudden lack of contact with outstretched fingers, drawing Akira's attention to another detail.

"I see he takes after his father," Akira remarked, eyes narrowed at the mouth cavities on Riku's hands. No doubt about it, this kid was Deidara's. They were all gum and no teeth, but she hadn't expected that. Kaname laughed.

"Don't look so sour. The same thing happened to me," Kaname said, resting a hand on the Hyuuga girl's shoulder.

Smiling slightly, Akira placed her hand over Kaname's and watched until Riku's eyes finally closed again and he fell back asleep. Then, she withdrew her hand and spoke again, only this time much more quietly.

"So, what kind of deal are we talking here with the hokage?"

"Don't worry, no indentured servitude or anything like that," Kaname assured while Eri lay Riku back down in the cradle.

"Shall we take this up in the bedroom?" Eri suggested, and, with a slight nod, Akira agreed.

"How long are you here for?" Akira inquired, the door now closed behind them.

"The deal is six weeks, but let's see how that goes," Kaname said. "At Tsunade's suggestion, I agreed to work at the academy. Apparently, that's where she put you?"

Akira smiled and shook her head at the memory of how she ended up there. "Yep. Are you going to be a teacher's assistant, as well?"

"To the spy tactics teacher." Kaname smiled back. "Apparently, she's the only one without an assistant."

"Suzume." Akira laughed sardonically and shook her head. "If anyone is going to be able to get along with her, you will." Kaname certainly had more of a talent for that than she did. "What about you Eri?"

"With Riku around, I would prefer to stay home with him for a while. However, when he gets a bit older, Tsunade said she will think of something for me."

"Wow." Akira made a mental note to thank the hokage for her generosity later. Not only had Tsunade surprised her, but she had lined up jobs for her former teammates, as well.

The three of them had so much to catch up on, even after such a short time.

"So Tsunade found out?!" Kaname exclaimed. Eri quickly shushed her, reminding both of them of the baby. In response, Kaname all but whispered, "So she knows about Itachi, then?"

"It wasn't exactly how I planned it to go, but yes," Akira admitted, and without thinking she placed a hand on her stomach. By now, the lump was far more obvious. "Pretty much all of it."

Awkward silence filled the room, but, as quickly as possible, Akira changed the subject.

"I'm having twins."

Like her newfound Hyuuga family, Kaname and Eri's jaws dropped.

"Akira, that's wonderful!" Eri exclaimed quietly. "Do you know the gender?"

"A girl and a boy."

Somehow, everything but the topic of names came up. Akira made mention of Anko's aforementioned baby shower, which she secretly hoped would never happen, as well as the details of her revelation to the rest of the academy.

"How did they let Eri in with Riku?" Akira inquired, wanting to steer the conversation away from herself.

"Kaede-sensei did it somehow. I didn't ask questions," Eri shrugged.

"And the nurses… how did they take to Riku's… erm…"

"Genjutsu," Eri replied simply. "Kaname did most of the work to help me, but, for any others, I simply let them see what they wanted to."

"Resourceful." Akira had to admit, she would have been freaking out way too much to have thought of that, especially after something as painful as labor. "And your parents?"

"Both of our parents were hesitant to allow us to come here, especially considering Eri's situation, but we wanted to support you, and eventually everyone gave in," Kaname chirped. "It worked out."

"Props to Riku for making such a journey."

"It comes in handy being a medic nin," Eri admitted. "He was fussy, though."

The girls continued catching up, talking about this and that, anything and everything. However, all three of them remained unaware of the two dark figures, chakras cloaked, watching them outside Akira's apartment window.

-

"Danzou-sama." The elder turned as a voice called his name. Two cloaked figures with nothing more than their eyes showing appeared in front of him, both knelt in prostrate positions.

"Rise." Without so much as batting an eye, Danzou spoke. "Fu. Torune." The Yamanaka and the Aburame. "Your report?"

Torune spoke first.

"You are correct. Tsunade's latest apprentice is with child."

"Itachi's?"

"Yes. Two other kunoichi from the girl's home village have joined her as of today. They also confirmed this. One of them will be working with her at the academy."

"Two more kunoichi?" Danzou looked away, mildly annoyed. Of course, Tsunade would allow such a thing. It would be more difficult for him to strike surreptitiously with two more sets of eyes watching.

"One of the kunoichi also has an infant of her own," Fu added. "The father is unknown."

"This certainly complicates matters." Danzou's index finger brushed across his chin in a thinking pose. Could he risk eliminating all three of them?

"What would you like us to do?" Torune inquired, still with an air of great respect.

Danzou paused for another moment, and then pulled his hand away from his scarred chin.

"Leave them be for now and simply continue watching. The Hyuuga girl will die before the young Uchiha are born, but we must wait for the opportune moment."

-

"Itsumade Kaname," Iruka sounded out the syllables of the Whirlpool girl's name as he read off a chart eerily similar to the one Akira had handed him only weeks ago. "And you're here to student teach, as well?"

"Yep! Tsunade's signature is right at the bottom!" Kanamae was far bolder about her position than Akira had ever been as she pointed to the section on the file. "I'm here for a six-week internship under Suzume."

"And your medical files?" Understandably, Iruka was wary as he flipped through papers for this detail.

Kaname sighed, knowing what he must be thinking and simply blurted, "I'm not pregnant. You don't have to worry about that."

A second later, Iruka's findings confirmed this, and at last he set aside the documents and extended his hand to Kaname to shake.

"All right then. Welcome to the team, Kaname-san."

"Iruka-san?" Just as the head teacher's hand made contact with Kaname's, a new presence poked his head into the room. Akira, Kaname and Iruka all turned to see Fukami Makoto at the doorway to the classroom.

"Daikoku-san just wanted me to drop off some papers for you," the chuunin explained, smiling nervously as he approached them. His eyes fell on Kaname.

"You're Suzume's new assistant?" he fumbled slightly at his words, but nonetheless walked forward to shake her hand like Iruka just had. Not knowing what else to do, Kaname laughed.

"Yep. Another Whirlpool Village intern." This was certainly becoming a thing for them.

"She also specializes in healing, although unlike Akira, she wields a plant jutsu rather than the gentle fist," Iruka explained. "She will do well with helping Suzume teach some of the girls about botany."

Judging by his expression, Makoto hardly heard a word Iruka said. His eyes were completely glued to Kaname, although it was not lust reflected in his eyes. Especially when she laughed, Makoto's eyes were filled with pure wonder, and he only broke out of his trance when Akira cleared her throat. Everyone seemed to have forgotten she was there.

"Shall I introduce Kaname to Suzume?" Akira inquired.

Makoto looked about to speak, but, with a brief look of strain, he held his tongue. Not at all noticing due to his focus on a stack of papers to hand back his students, Iruka said, "Sure. She should be in the teacher's lounge."

Kaname flashed both the men a smile as she and Akira headed out of the room. Once outside, Akira raised an eyebrow at Kaname, but her friend did not seem to realize what for.

"I'm nervous about this," Kaname admitted, and Akira could tell by her friend's posture that this was true. "I've never taught children before."

Akira laughed, and, in an attempt to be reassuring, said, "Don't worry. If I can pull it off, so can you. Unlike me, you actually have a younger sibling." With Kaname and Ryo being five years apart, her friend should be far more knowledgeable with how to deal with childish behavior than her or Eri.

Once Kaname was situated and everyone was introduced, Akira headed back to Anko's classroom, where she knew the lecture would be starting soon.

It still felt like a dream to have her friends here.

Halfway through the day, Akira began feeling woozy. Likely, it was just the pregnancy acting up, but thankfully at the time she was not teaching. Anko raised her eyebrow slightly at Akira's sudden change in demeanor, but, from her positon behind the children, Akira gave her a brief wave to continue the lecture regardless.

Save for that episode, the day went on as planned, and Akira closed the day's lecture with her usual piece on healing. Some of the children were even beginning to summon proper green healing chakra, unlike some of the embarrassing failures they had endured before.

"Great job, Hideki!" Akira praised, as, of all people, the brown-haired boy with the bandage over his nose was the first to have the best example. Most people stereotyped girls as being the ones more adept at healing, but, like her co-worker Fukami Makoto, this boy was gentle.

Some of the girls got the basic principle as well that day, but not nearly as well as Hideki. And to think, this had been the disruptive boy Anko threw a kunai at to silence on her first day. But, since her arrival, he had drastically mellowed.

The end of the day came swiftly all things considered, and, unsurprisingly, Kaname babbled the whole way home.

"And then there was this girl named Ayumi, and she wanted to know the meaning behind an amaryllis. And she looked so surprised when I actually knew it!" Akira did not even register Kaname's full sentence as another wave of nausea swept over her.

Detecting her discomfort, Kaname stopped short.

"Something wrong?"

Akira paused her walking, hand over her stomach. "They're moving," she winced, exhaling slowly in an attempt to mitigate the pain. "It just caught me off guard."

Kaname nodded knowingly and placed a comforting hand on her friend's shoulder.

They walked home a bit more slowly, especially up the multiple flights of stairs, only to find Riku in his playpen meddling with a stuffed toy while Eri cleaned the area around them.

"Back already?" The dark-haired kunoichi held a cleaning rag in her hand. The premise looked better dusted and washed than Akira had seen since her first day here.

"Suzume-san let me off early for my first day," Kaname explained, smirking slightly. "And Akira over here wasn't feeling so good."

Eri's eyebrows knitted together in concern, but Akira merely rolled her eyes.

"Kaname's kidding. This is the normal time I usually get home." It was past four thirty, although sometimes, depending on what needed to be done, she stayed longer.

"I didn't even have a chance to go shopping for groceries to make dinner," Eri remarked, sighing as she tossed the cleaning rag back into the bucket of water she had been using. Akira was low on living necessities to begin with, and, now with three people, dinner for all of them without a shopping trip was out of the question.

"Sorry, but I'm not going anywhere," Akira muttered, curling up into a ball on the couch. Her feet—or, come to think of it,  _everything_ —hurt and the last thing she wanted to do right now was go out and walk.

"Riku is going to throw a fit if I don't take him with me," Eri remarked, casting a sideways glance at her son, who was still preoccupied with the stuffed toy for the time being, "and it takes forever to get him ready."

Kaname sighed, setting her bag down next to the couch where Akira sat. "All right, I get it! Where's the store list? I'll go by myself. How hard can it be to find my way from here to the market?" Kaname crossed her arms, nose in the air to prove her point.

Akira and Eri exchanged grins when Kaname looked away, and, as soon as she turned back, Eri scurried to the kitchen to grab the store list.

-

Kaname grumbled under her breath as she descended the multiple flights of stairs, skirt in hand to prevent herself from tripping.

It was understandable that she, the only one of them who wasn't pregnant or already with a baby, would be the one to run the errands. But after her first day at the academy, this was not Kaname's idea of a celebration.

"In the least, I'll be able to get whatever I want," Kaname murmured, subconsciously tapping the list in her pocket.

Finding the marketplace was fairly easy. Most of the people carrying shopping bags and such came from the same direction, and the most Kaname had to do was follow them.

She was still trying to get used to the sights and sounds of Konoha. It was so much larger than the Whirlpool Village, and she had never come terribly close to the Land of Fire on missions, and didn't entirely know what to do with it all. Apparently, Akira's request to move to Konoha was one of the first in a very long time that the Whirlpool Village had made an effort to contact Konoha.

_Either way,_  Kaname thought, letting out a sigh as she reexamined the list,  _down to business._

Most stands were pretty straightforward. Lots of villagers sold produce, others soaps and handmade goods. Kaname was able to obtain everything on the list, but as she bought item after item and ingredient after ingredient, she fully registered why Akira and Eri tended to go shopping in a group.

It wasn't that everything was terribly heavy, but there was just so much of it. It was a balancing act simply trying to lift the eight or nine—Kaname couldn't really tell—bags. The plastic ones went easily enough around her wrists, but the three different papers bags had either broken handles or none at all, and she only had two hips on which to anchor them.

But, just as she felt her fingers loosen around one of the aforementioned bags, Kaname winced, bracing herself for the soul-shattering sound of their groceries hitting the ground. But, when no sound came, Kaname hesitantly opened one eye to see a familiar set of hazel orbs staring back at her.

"Itsumade-san?" It was Fukami Makoto, the teacher's assistant from back at the academy. The oddly nice one—and he had been the one to catch her grocery bag.

Blinking several times, Kaname reopened both eyes and stared at the man for several seconds, dumbfounded. A million questions raced through her mind, but her fumbling lips only managed to form one word.

"Hi…"  _Nice, Kaname. REAL nice._ Could she have thought of a stupider reply?

"Need any help?" His smile was genuine and innocent. Something told her she could trust it, but her pride almost didn't let her.

"I'm okay, thanks," she insisted and attempted to continue on her way, but stumbled nearly a second later even without the bag he was holding. Thankful he couldn't see the face she was making because her back was turned, Kaname let out a sigh and spoke again.

"Only if you don't have somewhere else to be."

His smile remained. "Just show me where to go."

The two of them scrambled to the edge of the street where they ran less chance of someone attempting to shove or run them over. After readjusting the bags on her wrists and silently kicking herself for not thinking of this earlier, Makoto re-positioned some of the groceries and things into a single paper bag that he held from the bottom to ensure it wouldn't rip. And, although it begrudged her to admit it, Makoto definitely had the advantage when it came to upper body strength.

Makoto was surprisingly pleasant company and easy conversation. Not that she expected him to be unpleasant, but most young adult men she met were either full of themselves and completely lacking in social graces or the complete opposite end of the spectrum and overly sensitive, but not Makoto. He was good natured, he had a sense of humor, and, as demonstrated by his prior actions, he was a gentleman.

She was laughing, but honestly Kaname had no idea why. The topic of their conversation blurred and varied, but almost anything that came up she suddenly found funny.

They were a street away from the apartment now.

"Thanks for the help." Her cheeks burned red, and she prayed he didn't notice. "Hopefully, next time I'll be more careful so as not to trouble you again."

He just smiled at her again. "No trouble at all, Itsumade-san. Always happy to help."

_No wonder he's a teacher._  With a heart of service like that, what kid couldn't at least appreciate?

"Well, here we are," Kaname stated, stopping in front of the apartment. "You can leave the bags just inside the door." It would take her a trip or two, but in the least she shouldn't drop anything again. "Thank you."

Undeterred, he said, "What floor do you live on?" and immediately she knew his intent was to continue helping her all the way up to her room.

"Really, it's okay. You've done more than enough already!" she tried to insist, but he just kept giving her that puppy dog stare. Not in an annoying way or anything, just in a way that she couldn't keep looking and not feel guilty without answering honestly.

After a brief period of silence she finally said, "Fifth floor." And somehow, he knew there was no elevator.

His trek up the stairs was effortless. Not that hers was particularly strenuous, but she definitely felt something resembling strain near the last few steps. Makoto, meanwhile, looked energized, if anything.

"I'm home," Kaname all but muttered, kicking open the door to the apartment after fiddling with the key for what felt like an eternity.

Eri was the first face she saw. The dark-haired kunoichi was attempting to multitask setting the table with one hand all the while balancing her infant son on the opposite side of her body.

"Ah, you're back!" Eri didn't seem to sense the extra chakra behind her as she placed the final plate on the table. "Did you get everything okay?"

"Heh, about that…" After removing her shoes and setting down the bags, Kaname nervously pinched her fingers together. And before she could so much as attempt to explain…

"Itsumade-san, where would you like me to put these?"

Eri raised an eyebrow. Then Akira came in.

"Ah, Makoto!" she exclaimed, looking happier than Kaname would have expected her to be. "What brings you here?" The form fitting purple shirt Akira now wore in addition to her dark pants clearly showed off the baby bump forming at her midsection.

"Makoto is one of the other assistant teachers at the academy," Akira quickly explained, noting Eri's lost expression, to which the chocolate-eyed kunoichi then nodded.

"Three people is a lot to shop for, so I was struggling with all the bags," Kaname admitted sheepishly, then motioned to their latest addition. "Makoto was kind enough to assist me."

"I'm Eri," she introduced, and then motioned to the boy on her hip. "And this is Riku."

"Pleased to meet you." Makoto bowed to both of them. Not sure what else to do, Kaname shifted awkwardly before he spoke again. "Thank you for allowing me in here. I suppose I should be going," he said, hazel eyes flicking toward the set of dinnerware Eri gathered.

"You've come all this way. Why don't you stay for dinner?" Eri inquired, offering a smile. "It's the least we can do after all you've already done."

Makoto's expression immediately changed to sheepish as he closed his eyes and raised his hands in a pacifistic manner. "I wouldn't want to intrude on you ladies any further."

"Come on. How else are we supposed to get to know each other outside of the academy?" Kaname was the next to speak, and Makoto inquisitively turned to face her. "Please. It would be our pleasure to host you."

And, with that, he gave in.

Honestly, Kaname should have known better. The three of them had so much to hide that it was practically social and possibly literal suicide inviting someone they didn't know into their home. But, somehow, as Eri situated Riku playpen, considering she had already breastfed him earlier that day, she and Akira scurried into the kitchen to finish whatever last minute preparations the extra groceries enabled, Kaname didn't feel so threatened.

Makoto was great with Riku, using one of the boy's noise-making stuffed animals and making faces as he did so, which caused the three-month-old to grin his toothless smile and clap his tiny genjutsu-altered hands in glee. Kaname smiled softly at the scene as she and the leaf chuunin leaned over the playpen.

"Do you have any siblings?" Kaname inquired. Makoto looked up at her, hazel eyes twinkling with childlike innocence. "You're way too good at that." Even she hadn't been that adept at playing with her brother Ryo when they were younger.

"I have two younger sisters, Aya and Megumi," he replied before turning his attention back to Riku, who was now nibbling the best he could on the toy with no teeth.

"And your parents?"

"My father died when I was young. My mother's still around, though." The nonchalant way he spoke made her feel incredibly guilty, and, with all the death and pain her friends had already endured, she wasn't about to feel better about her hasty statement to him any time soon.

"I'm sorry," she muttered quickly, but he just smiled at her again.

"It's okay. It happens."

Before she could talk again and likely ask another stupid question, Akira and Eri emerged from the kitchen, meals in hand.

"Sorry for the wait!" Eri said softly, smiling flawlessly like a proper hostess.

Akira sat down to join them and Eri returned to the kitchen to fetch something else while the other three of them clapped their hands together and chanted "Itadikimasu!"

As always with Akira and Eri's cooking, the food was delicious. Kaname was secretly thankful that she had not been the one to cook tonight, given her lack of skill in the kitchen. Somehow, despite Kaname's effort to avoid it, the topic of family was brought up again and Eri nigh parroted Kaname's prior words to Makoto.

"So do you have family in Konoha, Fukami-san?" She glanced back and forth to Riku every so often to ensure her son remained satisfied lying down in his playpen, but, for the most part, she kept her chocolate gaze on Makoto.

Kaname winced at the repeated mention of Makoto's family, but he seemed unphased.

"I live with my mother and two sisters not far from here," he replied. "In fact, Aya and Megumi both work as nurses at the hospital with Haruno Sakura. You may have met them already during your training with Tsunade-sama, Akira-san."

"I don't recall meeting anyone with those names, but I have probably seen them," Akira admitted, thoughtfully putting a finger to her chin. "I'll have to keep an eye out."

The meal finished quickly and somehow, further awkward conversation was avoided. Makoto didn't ask about the father of Akira or Eri's child. He didn't demand to know why they were all here. He just inquired about what he knew and didn't press unnecessarily.

_Considering how accustomed to Misaki and Saito I am, this is unreal._

"May I help with the clean up?" Makoto asked earnestly once the meal was over, which both Akira and Eri insisted he not.

"Please, stay out here and play with Riku," Eri had said. "It's odd when he takes this much of a liking to someone he's not familiar with."

"My sisters cook well, like your friends," Makoto murmured, almost absentmindedly after Eri and Akira had gone back into the kitchen to wash the dishes. "The three of you should come over sometime. Bring Riku if you like. Aya and Megumi love children, and my mother loves to entertain guests."

"That would be… great." Kaname could not help but trail off. Something about the whole situation was throwing off her thought process. She couldn't remember the last time she'd been this scatterbrained in front of a complete stranger.

Just like on their way to the house from the market place, Kaname didn't remember much of their conversation after that. They said a few words to each other. Makoto mostly played with Riku and she watched, relishing the scene.

By the time Akira and Eri returned, Makoto was preparing to leave.

"Thank you for having me, Eri-san, Akira." He bowed to both of them and turned to the copper-haired kunoichi last. "Kaname."

Whatever it possessed her to act this way, Kaname also felt it increase her heartbeat to a speed as if she were in the midst of a dangerous battle. She quickly bowed in an attempt to hide her flushing cheeks.

"I look forward to working with you at the academy!"

She hadn't said anything wrong that time, but Kaname still felt her body overheat as Makoto waved a final time and then headed out the door. She stood there silently, tracing his chakra as he descended down the multiple flights of apartment steps and then out the door, only to intermingle with the countless other presences of Konohagakure.

She felt stupid. Stupid, but giddy. What an odd combination.

"What a nice man," Eri remarked, her tone thoughtful. Kaname could only nod in agreement.

"Yeah, nice," she said absentmindedly.

Maybe living and working in Konoha wouldn't be such a difficult transition, after all.

-

(Two months later…)

Akira waddled down the dusty Konoha path away from the academy and toward her apartment. Now six months along, even a total stranger could deduce her condition.

"I can't believe Anko actually followed through," Akira remarked to Kaname, shaking her blonde head. She'd actually kept her promise about that baby shower.

It embarrassed her to admit it, but Akira hadn't seen it coming. She recalled the snake kunoichi mentioning something about it, but Akira hadn't actually expected her friend to gather gifts and expenses and then surprise her at the end of a long work day with a dango-themed party. Her gift from Anko, aside from the party itself, had been three stuffed pillows: green, white and pink, momentarily compressed for the sake of travelling convenience.

"One for you and another for each of them!" Anko had reasoned.

The entire ordeal had been catered and everything. Even the boys were surprisingly cooperative in contributing. Everyone had signed a card wishing her luck in three months time when her due date came, and Hinata and Hanabi had even taken the time to show up and celebrate with her and the other ladies.

"Yeah, but at least you don't have to carry everything," Kaname muttered, readjusting her grip on all the bags and boxes.

"It'll save us some serious shopping and you won't have to ask Makoto-san for help later." Kaname blushed, but Akira pretended not to notice. Kaname got upset when she did that. "Speaking of which, how is he doing?"

Shopping would be a lot easier for the next few weeks with all the money some of the parents had donated. Those that hadn't known what to get her had simply presented her with cash, and apparently Akira was more well-liked than she thought.

"How should I know better than you? We all work in the same building."

"True, but I'm not the one who went out to lunch with him this afternoon."

"It was a thank you for helping him with all the grading last week!" Kaname protested. Akira laughed again.

"Sure, Kaname, whatever you say." She waited a few seconds for her friend to fluster some more before speaking again. "Any word on when your next dinner with the family is?"

True enough, Makoto had kept his promise to invite them over a few weeks after his inadvertent visit to the Whirlpool kunoichis' apartment, but, due to extenuating circumstance—being Akira's meetings with Tsunade and Riku being fussy—Kaname had been the only one to go that first time. And then the next time. And the next time. By now, it was becoming such a pattern that Akira and Eri often joked that they'd been forgotten altogether.

"Probably sometime next week, depending on how much we both manage to get done," Kaname replied, trying to sound casual. Akira just laughed again.

Even if she couldn't directly say it, Akira was happy for her friend. Makoto was a good man, a good teacher, and a good shinobi. Given her and Eri's failures with relationships, in the least, Kaname deserved to get this right.

With how late they had gotten out thanks to the baby shower, the sun was already setting. Splashes of orange and pink littered the sky in a typical Konoha sunset, but not-so-typically, today's clouds were tinged red.

The color gave her a dank feeling. Akira couldn't quite place it, but she felt like something bad was about to happen. She instinctively ran a hand across her swollen abdomen.

"Is something wrong?" Kaname inquired, and it wasn't until her friend spoke that the Hyuuga girl realized she had stopped walking.

"Oh, nothing at all!" Akira assured, brushing off the feeling. What was she thinking? How was she supposed to know anything about what was going to happen? It must be the pregnancy making her feel so strange.

With a quick grunt of determination, Akira resumed her pace with Kaname. Even with all the gifts and trinkets from the shower encumbering her, Kaname still managed to stay in front of her, to which Akira could only sigh. But, even as they slowly ascended the flights of stairs to the apartment and Akira sat on the couch to view the bloody sky through the glass in her window, she couldn't seem to shake that silly, negative feeling.

Whatever it was, she would know soon enough.

-

"Tomorrow it begins." Konan did not look up from folding her origami paper in half when Nagato spoke. Yahiko's body and Nagato's voice—something she'd never quite managed to get used to.

Akatsuki's base had grown considerably lonely. Since Itachi's death, Madara had been working tirelessly to train Sasuke and prepare for Konoha's invasion. Most of the other Peins were out on scouting missions or maintaining order in Amegakure, but she and the God realm were alone together in her room.

Their standard meeting rooms had been much too dark and damp for her. Even the station containing the equipment required for maintaining the Realm bodies had not been a place she desired to be. She was accustomed to darkness, yes, but at times she tired of it, and when she had headed off to her room for a change of scenery, Pein had wordlessly followed her.

Konan sat on her bed folding origami. Pein now stood beside her, watching ominously.

"We have waited a long time for this," Konan agreed, still not making eye contact as she performed the next fold in her arrangement. "And Sasuke?"

"Madara has sent him after the eight tails. Likely, he will not fail us."

"Likely?" Konan's lips remained emotionless as she began folding the neck for her paper crane, but her eyes flared. "The boy is rash. He may look like Itachi, but he is nothing like him."

"He is powerful."

"True." Konan could not argue with that. Finished with her first paper crane, Konan reached for another sheet in the stack of paper beside her. She folded this one in half, as well. "But that kind of power without control is nothing but dangerous."

Nagato did not argue further. Instead, his ringed gaze followed her hands as she placed yet another paper crane on the nightstand's surface and reached for a third sheet of paper.

"Why cranes?" he finally asked. "Out of all the origami you can fold, why cranes?"

"Legend says if one folds a thousand paper cranes, the folder's wish will be granted."

"And what is your wish, Konan?" At last, the kunoichi looked into his ringed gaze. Her amber eyes that had once been full of childish youth and vigor were now barely alive. Yahiko's death had sapped her of whatever positive emotion she had left to express, but nonetheless, here she was staring at him.

"Peace." With that, she stood up, the third paper crane she folded cradled in her hands and still locking eyes with "Yahiko." "A world where children do not need to suffer and people like Yahiko and Sensei don't have to die."

"Jiraiya had it coming. He did not share God's views."

"I know." Although her face showed nothing, her fingers tenderly reached for the familiar hands of her lifelong partner and, with open palms, he received the crane she had folded. "But if my wish were granted, you would not have fought in the first place."

"Tomorrow it will be," Nagato said quietly. His fingers enclosed around the creature, and, as they did, Konan's hands lingered on his.

Her affections for Yahiko had been no secret. The first few days after his death were the worst. It was one thing for a comrade to die and for her to bury them. That, in the least, allowed closure. But Yahiko—the boy she loved—was gone, and although his body still moved, all his eyes displayed were Nagato.

She cared for Nagato deeply. With his current condition in controlling the realms, she waited on him hand and foot, always ensuring he had what he needed and that he did not push himself too far. She offered protection, and she offered advice. Sometimes, he even listened.

But did she love him? To this day, Konan did not know. After all this time, both of them had pushed aside any thoughts of emotion and focused fully on their task of not only avenging Yahiko, but preventing other tragedies like his from happening again.

Emotions were especially useless to her in a house full of psychopathic, egotistical and, with the exception of Pein and Itachi, self-centered men. Nearly this entire time, save for a single year, she had been practically the only woman, and although women were stereotyped as overly emotional compared to the average man, Konan prided herself in being an exception.

"I suppose it will." Konan removed her hands and sat back down on the bed, in the process, grabbing another sheet to continue folding.

Nagato looked at her blankly, almost as if he were about to speak, but for whatever reason, he waited a few seconds.

"Are you afraid something will go wrong?"

Konan shook her head.

"You are God. There is nothing that you cannot do. An angel does not doubt."

Despite her words, Konan knew she wasn't being entirely honest. Of course, she had worries. They had lost so many members already, and she didn't want to lose Nagato like she had Yahiko. Almost as if he could sense her dishonesty, Pein moved to sit on the bed beside her. He didn't touch her or even offer a comforting word. He just sat there with her, and secretly, she was grateful.

Nonetheless, he assured her, "We will win tomorrow."

By the time Konan looked at him again, she had finished her tenth crane and the nightstand was beginning to crowd.

They had nothing to do and nothing left to prepare. All was just a matter of time. But what were they supposed to do with that time? Orders had been given, plans were prepared and all of the remaining members were off achieving their own assignments. For the next ten hours, it was just them, and training at this point was useless.

Nagato's actual body was just down the hall in the secret room behind the meeting room. Their base in the top of Amegakure's highest tower was one they frequented, and even customized with a standard meeting place and a personal room for Konan amid everything else. Being God to the people certainly did have its perks and as did the impressive funds they had gathered from all the missions and bounties.

Konan was not entirely sure who initiated what happened next. Likely Nagato, since she did not recall moving, but still, she could not be entirely sure. All she felt was the light touch of Pein's lips on hers.

He did not linger long. The kiss was so short, and for a moment Konan wondered if it ever actually happened—but the feel of another person's saliva on her lower lip was unmistakable.

Not wasting a second, Konan cupped her newfound lover's cheek and pulled his face back to hers, not wanting to let go just yet. This time, the kiss deepened.

It felt wrong, or so Konan tried to tell herself. Yahiko's body should be cold. The only thing animating this silly form was the chakra receivers piercing the skin, and the proof of that lay in Nagato's rinnegan. But Yahiko's mouth was inviting and his skin warm to the touch. How could he not be alive?

By the time they separated, both of them panted but not from exhaustion.

Pein cupped her chin to kiss her again, but Konan turned away, not wanting to look into Nagato's eyes on Yahiko's face. She felt confused enough as it was.

Maybe she loved both of them. Nagato's true body couldn't move on its own. Changing locations, even close ones, was agony and something they tried to avoid as much as possible. Yahiko was dead, but his body could move. Could this even sanely be considered a compromise?

"What's wrong?" Even at Pein's words, Konan continued to look away.

Then again, could any of their actions even be considered sane?

Without replying, Konan pulled him into another kiss, and before Nagato could say another word, Konan shoved the man onto the bed with his feet still dangling over the side. She didn't straddle him per say, but one of her manicured hands remained firmly planted on the God realm's chest as she continued kissing him.

They'd lost Sasori, Hidan, Kakuzu, Deidara, Itachi and even their healer—Madara had been the one to bring them news of that last one. Somehow, Akira had escaped Zetsu's watch with Itachi's body. Konan felt little pain over the losses, as she was far too used to it by now, but she could not deny the impact it had on their organization.

Save for her last few moments with Akira, Konan had kept all of the members at an arm's length, both emotionally and physically. However, having them all there had filled some hole in her. Just having people around, even if no one was close, had been so much better than nothing at all—better than spending all her days around corpses of former comrades.

With all of them gone, here she was, starving for companionship and desperate to feel something.

Her breathing hitched as Pein moved his affections from her mouth to the side of her neck. She gasped when he bit down and, before she knew it, he was the one on top.

"Konan?" Her cheeks were flushed and, with her head thrown back, all Konan could do was groan.

"What?"

"Should we stop?" Despite his rough exterior and countless heinous acts, with her, Nagato still tried to be gentle. But right now, gentle was not what Konan needed. Her hands reached to begin unfastening his Akatsuki cloak, and that was all the reply he needed.

Just this once, they could be together without the worries of duty, politics, and villages.

Even if was only for a little while.


	36. Chapter 36

"Now we're going to split up. One group will cause a diversion and the other will do reconnaissance. Let's make sure we've got it sorted out." Konan listened intently as Nagato barked orders to the five other realms. "Diversion tactics are up to the Demon Realm," the unnervingly tall bald man with no ears, "the Animal Realm," the only female realm as well as their most recent addition, "and the Hungry Ghost Realm," the man with the square face, slicked back hair and chakra receptors down his nose, either side of his cheeks, and spiked below his lip.

Nagato continued, "Reconnaissance is up to the God Realm," himself, of course, "Human Realm," the long-haired one with the single nose piercing, "and Hell Realm," the other spiky-haired one with lines like Itachi beneath his eyes, only pierced.

The God Realm turned to the paper kunoichi this time. "Konan, you're on reconnaissance team."

She nodded. "I know." How could she not? They'd gone over this strategy hundreds of times.

Without skipping a beat, Nagato continued, "There's a spherical barrier protecting Konoha from all sides, including above, and any intruders will be sensed immediately." He paused for effect. "As planned, we're going to launch the Animal Realm above the village. That way they will overestimate our number and it will throw them off."

The Animal Realm spoke up, "Itachi and Kisame apparently got in without a problem."

"But Itachi was with Konoha's assassination squad; he knew how to get through the barrier without setting it off," the God Realm replied stiffly. The Animal Realm began performing hand signs for a teleportation jutsu, and the Demon Realm placed a hand on her shoulder, enabling him to come with her. The first Pein mundanely continued, "I have my own way of doing things."

Finished her jutsu, the Animal Realm held the tiger hand sign, and, in a surge of blue chakra, transported both herself and the Demon Realm to the desired location above Konoha's village barrier. Even if they didn't know all the details, by now, Konoha knew they were coming.

As they other Peins began dissipating in their aforementioned directions, Konan, in the midst of signing to do the same, stole a glance at the one formerly known as Yahiko.

She didn't expect him to look at her, but, although briefly, he did. She couldn't say anything. With her jutsu halfway done, she certainly couldn't do anything, either, but the previous night's words and activities still hung heavy in her mind.

_Your will be done, Nagato._  Amber orbs glinted, and, although it wasn't direct, the God realm cocked his head in her direction ever so slightly, just enough for her to see the look on his face and the familiar rings of his irises. Almost as if he intended to say back to her,  _"Good luck, Konan."_

Konan's body dispersed into scraps of paper. She and the God realm were the last to disappear.

-

"Scatter!" Akira could not believe her ears as she recognized the words of a voice she never thought to hear again. Five other unfamiliar presences flickered to life on her radar, but before she could react, a loud explosion rang out several yards away from her. All she had been able to see was a missile-like structure collide with the side of a building, reducing it to rubble.

A male voice much farther away from her her exclaimed, "What's that?" but the surprise was short-lived. Explosions rang out in more directions than Akira could count, and the most she could do in the meantime was crouch on the reverberating ground with everyone else and wait for the madness to end.

_It's beginning._  Akira's eyes were wide. Why hadn't she realized it? All these months at the academy had lulled her into a false sense of security. Akatsuki was attacking  _today._

Someone let out a cry about the same distance from her as the first explosion.

Another explosion rang out, louder this time, and as did another cry, but this one wasn't human. It sounded like a summons of some sort, and it was. A giant black and orange centipede protruded halfway from the splitting earth, and a woman that Akira didn't recognize with countless piercings, much like Akatsuki's fake leader, held a hand sign nearby.

The centipede proceeded to crash haphazardly from building to building, leaving rubble and screams of anguish in its wake. But, the only positive if she could even call it that, was the creature was moving away from their direction.

Coughing through the smoke, she pushed herself into a sitting position, byakugan eyes scanning for the enemy. Another Pein look-alike, this time a male with long hair and more multitudes of piercings, burst from seemingly nowhere and began walking toward a different shinobi she didn't recognize with a crop of dirty blonde hair and wearing the typical Konoha green flak jacket. Also attempting to recover from the multiple blasts, he was too weak to fight them.

She could only watch as the long-haired Pein placed a hand on the shinobi's head. She knew better than to feel relieved as the hand glowed and the man's look of horror changed to a state of vegetation.

"Looks like you don't know anything about the nine-tailed beast," she read the lips of the Pein, and, before Akira could further attempt to move, the Pein raised his hand above the shinobi's head and he fell motionless to the ground.

The shinobi's chakra was completely gone.

-

An ominous red glow emitted from the eight tails jinchuriki as Tobi, Zetsu, and Kisame stood in the darkness of the Akatsuki base, holding hand signs. Almost an hour in and they were only a small way through the extraction process.

"It takes forever when there's just a few of us," White Zetsu complained.

"Shut up at concentrate!" Black Zetsu retorted.

The multi-eyed statue hungrily consumed up the crimson chakra, but something wasn't right and Kisame knew it. His question was answered a moment later when the once incapacitated body of the infamous Killer B burst into a cloud of smoke, and only the twisted curl of an octopus tenacle remained.

They'd been tricked.

"Looks like Sasuke fucked up," Kisame grimaced. The severed tentacle fell to the ground and writhed for a few seconds. Zetsu didn't even bother to contain his laughter.

"Ahahaha! A tentacle!"

"Don't laugh!" his black side scolded.

Kisame glanced at Tobi. Judging by the Uchiha's aura, he was scowling beneath that mask of his.

"Indeed," the Uchiha said curtly as he lowered his hand from its previous seal.

"Guess this means it's my turn?" Kisame countered, smirking.

"No." Madara's tone remained curt. Kisame raised an eyebrow. "Not yet."

"Okay then…" Kisame's hand was back at his side by now, too. "What then?'

"For the time being, I wish for you to assist in the destruction of Konoha with Pein's diversion tactics team."

"So just go in and start slicing people until further notice?"

"Exactly."

-

Umino Iruka dashed through the streets of Konoha, puffs of smoke dancing behind him as buildings collapsed. A shinobi with spiky brown hair lay directly in his path, his face contorted into a look of pain.

Ignoring the noise behind him, Iruka stopped in his tracks to help the man.

"Are you alright?!" Still groaning, the injured man gripped the chuunin's arm. His leg looked broken. But, before Iruka could move another muscle, a presence appeared behind him, sending a chill up the dolphin ninja's spine.

"Where is the nine-tailed beast's host? Spit it out!" It was Akatsuki's leader—the one who had killed Jiraiya. Iruka's attention immediately drew to the black spiked weapon in the man's right hand, and Pein continued in a much more threatening tone, "Tell me or I'll kill you!"

"I won't tell you anything." By now, Iruka had let go of the injured man and exclusively glared at the Akatsuki.

"I see." Pein's tone deadpanned, but his hand holding the weapon already moved. Iruka braced himself for the inevitable, but it never came. When the academy teacher reopened his eyes, the spinning tomoe of Kakashi's sharingan defiantly met the leader's ringed gaze.

The copy ninja's hand had caught the spike before it could stab Iruka.

"So that was just a distraction, so you could search without being noticed." Kakashi's deadpan rivaled the Akatsuki's.

"Kakashi…" Iruka's eyes were wide with shock.

"Take that injured man and get out of here!" Kakashi barked, sparing no time for acknowledgment. Iruka nodded stiffly to his comrade and slumped the shinobi's arm over his shoulder.

"Right! Good luck, Kakashi!"

-

Akira breathed a sigh of relief from the distance where she stood behind a mass of rumble as Iruka jumped away, shinobi in tow. She'd seen the injured man, but she'd seen Pein, as well. She couldn't have risked him recognizing her, especially now. But with Pein occupied, she could finally uncloak her chakra and help them.

"Iruka-san!" the Hyuuga girl called out, and Iruka looked back at her from the man he was carrying.

"It's lucky you showed up when you did," Iruka remarked as Akira's palms lit up with energy. She placed them onto the area around the man's leg, and at last his groaning stopped and his figure fell limp. "The hospital is a ways away."

Considering she'd been there the whole time, the most Akira could manage was a, "Hn."

Their relief was short-lived as another explosion rang out, this time bursting an array of nearby buildings aflame. Voices muddled. There were so many panicked sounds that it became impossible to differentiate who was who.

"Hey, don't shove!"

"Run!"

"Hurry!"

"Eek!" A child tripped, separating her from her family as well as the crowd. Her light brown eyes were filled with fear and her similarly colored hair was already mussed with grime and dirt.

Akira recognized the centipede creature from earlier resurface just outside of a store with a sign reading "Candy." Instinctively, she rushed to stand as another person screamed, "RUN!"

"Akira, no!" Iruka grabbed her arm before she could rush toward them, but all the Hyuuga girl heard was the child's grandmother scream.

"TAMI!"

"TEME!" Akira had never been so thankful to hear another person swear. A flash of familiar chakra surged and the centipede summon was knocked back onto its dorsal side.

When the dust cleared, Haruno Sakura stood tall, shaking her fist at the now demolished giant creature.

"The centipede is dead," one of the onlookers remarked.

"Guess the girl killed it," another said. Akira rolled her eyes. It wasn't like any of them had tried to help.

Without skipping a beat, the Fifth's original apprentice turned back to the child, who stared at her in wonder from the ground.

"Are you alright?" Sakura demanded.

"Y-yeah…" Tami stuttered, but winced as her light brown eyes flicked toward the blood pooling from her skinned left knee. Akira felt bad for the girl. By the looks of it, she had been out to a trip to the candy store with her grandmother only for it to go terribly wrong.

The child's grandmother, a short, elderly woman with gray hair and baggy eyes, caught up with them just in time to hold her granddaughter and say, "Thank you!"

With a kind smile, Sakura knelt down beside Tami, and her left hand lit up with healing chakra. The broken skin on the child's knee closed within seconds. "Oh, good! Your wound wasn't that deep!" Sakura said.

Before Akira could yell at Iruka for having stopped her, the academy chunnin called out, "Sakura!" and dashed toward the pink-haired girl. "Are you okay?!"

"Iruka-san!" Sakura called back her former teacher's name, and, with great reluctance, Akira followed. Sakura's expression changed from the kindness of dealing with a child to the intensity of battle. "What the hell is going on?"

Before Akira could so much as construct a viable answer, Iruka did it for her.

"It's Akatsuki! They're attacking Konoha to try to find Naruto!"

"Akatsuki?!" Akira tried to ignore the pang of guilt she felt at Sakura's shocked expression.

"I've already told Tsunade. There will probably be an announcement soon."

_Good, at least Tsunade knows._  She'd told the woman everything she knew about the invasion. Seemingly everything but the date and time.

Sakura opened her mouth to say something else, but another series of explosions cut her short. Multiple sections of the village went up in flames and the screams of the villagers could be heard over the other commotion.

"We need to go," Sakura said instead. "Opposite directions to cover more ground?"

Akira nodded and both kunoichi jumped into the air.

_Byakugan!_ By now, Akira didn't need to form a hand sign. She knew she would have to prioritize. As much as she wanted to, she couldn't save everybody.

She was almost there, jumping from rooftop to rooftop. Most of the buildings were damaged, but most of them could still hold her weight at least for a moment. But, just as she set foot on top of what Akira knew was a clothing store, the roof beneath her crumbled, and, before the Hyuuga girl could recover, she fell through.

Through some miracle, she landed back on her feet, but her byakugan deactivated from the break in concentration.

She'd been lucky enough to land next to and not on top of what used to be a rack of on-sale women's clothing. The brightly colored sign was slightly mutilated and what clothes weren't crumpled on the floor were doused with grimy building matter and remains from the roof. Shards of wood littered the ground and not just around the clothing rack. She sensed other people here, too: civilians. But why was it so quiet?

More screams rang out to her left, answering her question. Without abandon, Akira rushed over to the scene.

She ducked to the left to avoid a villager flying toward her, hurled by some unknown force. With the size of her belly, Akira was not able to easily roll like she usually could, but in the least she managed to avoid being hit. Out of necessity she re-activated her byakugan, drew two kunai, and took shelter behind another rack of disheveled clothing, this time an array of men's pants.

Something else was destroying this particular store. Another one of the Peins? But as Akira focused in amid the chakra, her eyes widened at what she found.

"Whachya all so scared of? Get back here!" she'd recognize that guttural voice of wanton destruction anywhere.

Another villager, this time a woman close to Kurenai's age, landed near where Akira hid, bleeding from her eyes, nose, and mouth. She'd been struck dead on impact.

Akira desperately wanted to help, but something—fear, doubt, instinct or whatever it was—kept her frozen in place until one more voice rang out.

"Mommy!" a little boy, maybe seven years old, lay on the ground, his forehead bloody and black hair matted. His hand outstretched in the direction the dead woman had flown. His brown eyes were wide and filled with tears, and their attacker was ready, his massive weapon raised, to quiet to the noisy child.

A deafening  _clang_  rang out in the shop, and with it a cloud of dust arose from all the rubble around them. When it cleared, their attacker could be seen, sword struck down, but not impaling the child as he intended.

Akira strained as she anchored an X block with two kunai above her head, barely managing to keep the massive sword from striking both herself and the child beneath her. Even with both hands, she could barely hold her own against Kisame's single-handed strike. By the time she looked up into his familiar silver eyes, her byakugan activated, there was no hiding her identity. Even with the strain of the block, Akira cracked a sideways grin.

"Hello, Kisame." His surprise didn't last long, not even two seconds. But it was all she needed.

Akira rolled, or rather lunged, to the side as best her belly would allow, child in toe, and with the force of his strike, Kisame embedded his sword into the tile floor of the shop. Akira only made it to her knees before Kisame gripped the back of her pale pink maternity shirt.

"RUN!" Akira screamed, and the boy took off just as the Hyuuga girl was pulled back and thrown into the nearest wall.

Akira drew chakra around herself in a manner akin to the rotation to absorb the impact, making especially sure to protect her stomach region. She landed with her back against the wall, uninjured but stunned, bangs in her face and an impact circle around her crumpled figure.

"Well, well, well," the shark chuckled, giving her no time to recover. His hand enclosed around her throat, ready to crush her windpipe as he dragged Akira to her feet. She gagged for air, both hands fighting to relieve the pressure. "Hyuuga Akira."

His silver eyes scanned her and she could feel them rest on the the unmistakable bump in her tummy, which prevented him from getting too close to her. The only way she could rationalize his hesitation was him filling out the time tables in his head.

Her vision began to haze as her lack of oxygen became more and more desperate. By now, her mind was useless. Even with his hesitation to stab her, she was still suffocating.

_This is it._ If Akira could, she'd shake her head. A cruel twist of fate. Killed by Itachi's old partner.

She knew she would lose consciousness at any second. After that, just a bit longer with no oxygen and she was done for. Her and her children.

But unconsciousness never came. She may have blacked out for a second or two, but one minute she was off the ground, gasping for air, and the next she was on the tiled floor amid the rubble and blood that wasn't hers, Kisame nowhere to be seen. Her throat ached, but she could breathe. Her fingers gingerly rubbed the area where the shark's massive hand had only just been.

He'd let her go.

-

Kisame, numb to the villager's cries of pain, moved to slice another victim. Madara had only asked him to help out—do a little extra destruction here and there and instill a little more fear into the heart of Konoha, but he hadn't expected that. What the hell was Akira doing in here? And not just that…

_She's pregnant._ Itachi's child? It had to be. She dressed differently now, too. Her hair was down and, at least from what Kisame had seen, she dressed like a civilian.

_That must be why Zetsu never noticed her on any scouting missions._  In a village this big, a ninja could only find a chakra presence like that if they were either a sensor or specifically looking.

Still, her presence here made sense in some twisted way. His partner had probably informed her of the impending destruction of his, recently discovered to Kisame, beloved home village, and, considering her personality, she felt obligated to do something. But all the while carrying his child?

_Did Itachi even know?_ Madara certainly didn't. Kisame was certain he would have heard something about this if he did. Itachi was a good man when it came to keeping secrets, but surely he would not have abandoned Akira like he had with such knowledge. Uchiha Itachi had been a lot of things, but irresponsible was not one of them.

Still, Madara would not be pleased. If Sasuke found out his brother had any trace left on this earth, especially in the form of a child, he would only be more difficult to manipulate, and Madara was not about to let that happen, even if it meant killing Akira and her potential addition to the Uchiha clan.

It wasn't so much that Kisame had any value for the sacredness of life—hell, he killed when he felt like it. Konoha didn't mean much to him, and frankly neither did Akira.

But Itachi did. He wouldn't go as far to say that he cared about the damn weasel, but he'd certainly respected him. They'd worked together—and well—for eight years. And it was that respect that caused Kisame to hold his tongue.

_Besides,_ Kisame reasoned,  _Madara will find out sooner or later._

-

"Six piercings in his nose and seven in his ears…" The hokage turned when one of the four ANBU surrounding her spoke. The leader of Akatsuki stood before her. "It's him."

Here they were on Konoha's mountaintop, overlooking the destruction below. In the least, Tsunade had used to stored chakra from the seal on her forehead to heal more than just one person at a time. Still, there were so many already dead. Four ANBU surrounded her cross-legged form, standing guard. After witnessing the carnage of the village, Tsunade was, putting is simply, pissed.

"You…" There was something odd about this man. Not just in the ringed irises, but there was something about his face, beneath all those piercings.

"Long time no see, Tsunade." A cold shiver shot down the hokage's spine at hearing her enemy's voice. "You're the only one of the three ninjas left." Her anger only grew at the mention of her childhood teammates. "I've wanted to talk to you," the Akatsuki began, his tone even and calm.

"You're that kid…" Tsunade realized. The one from Amegakure, one of the ones Jiraiya had taken in. But his eyes—his eyes were different.

"Looks like you remember me."

"You know him?" The same ANBU who announced the Akatsuki's presence spoke again. Although she couldn't read the ANBU's expression behind that cat-like mask of his, she could tell by his tone that he was surprised.

"A little." Tsunade examined the man through narrowed eyes.

"The god who will restore order," Pein stated simply.

"He's no ordinary ninja, that's for sure." If Tsunade had not been more distracted, she would have glared at the ANBU. The last thing she needed right now was some idiot stating the obvious.

"Where is Uzuamki Naruto? Where is the nine-tailed beast?"

Tsunade mentally grimaced, outwardly making sure to keep her expression calm.  _Of course, they're after Naruto._ Drastic times and even more drastic measures. Then she spoke.

"Who knows?" No matter what happened, she would not allow this man to intimidate her. Not just the village, but Naruto was counting on her.

"It's no use hiding the tailed beast," Pein stated. "The fighting will start soon. The embers of war are already smoldering. We will control the war. If you cooperate, we will be willing to help you. You must be aware of our power."

"Do not underestimate the fifth hokage!" Tsunade snapped. "You're just a bunch of terrorists trying to destroy the stability our forefathers worked for! Whatever you say is meaningless!"

"Don't be so haughty." Pein met her gaze with an icy stare. Tsunade could feel the ANBU next to her growing more and more uncomfortable. Pein continued, "Your peace results in violence toward us."

"I'm not saying everything Konoha has done has been right!" she argued. Of course it wasn't; she remembered the countless injustices, and those were just the ones she knew about. "But I won't accept your way of doing things!"

"Watch what you say. This is your last warning from god." He paused, likely for effect. "Tell me where Naruto is."

Tsunade's anger only turned to defiance. "We will use everything we have to fight against you! That is all. And you're wrong about one thing…" Pein didn't look curious but he waited for her to continue. "You'll never get what you want most!"

"If you think Konoha's ninja can protect Naruto forever—" Pein began.

"That's not it," the hokage cut off, and, with her next words, Tsunade's frown turned to a smile. "Naruto is strong."

-

Three figures huddled together in a circle beside Konoha's crypto department, two with long blonde hair, and a dark-haired woman. Another man dressed in a long hooded overcoat, which concealed his ANBU mask, stood beside the trio as they spoke to each other in urgent tones.

"There are six bodies of Pain, and each body can use one technique," Shizune began, eyes darting between Yamanaka Inoichi and Ino. "That means the Pein Jiriaya defeated was brought back in another body." They'd performed an autopsy on the first Animal Realm only to have that same ability reincarnated in a corpse they definitely recognized.

"That girl was definitely dead when she was brought back from the tower in Amegakure," Inoichi mused, eyes narrowed in concentration.

Shizune waved a hollow black cylindrical object in front of Inoichi's face, demanding, "When you saw the body, did she already have these piercings?"

"No, I'm sure she didn't."

"It's seems it's just like Fukasaku said, Pein has the power to revive the dead," Shizune murmured, thinking hard about what Jiraiya's toad had told her. "It's possible everyone with those receivers is a dead body, and if there are receivers, there has to be a transmitter. In other words, there is someone controlling the bodies, sending chakra signals from the shadows."

Shizune paused, this time thinking back to the code Jiyaiya burned onto the toad's back. "Maybe that's what the code meant. 'There is no real one.' None of those six are the real body of Pein!"

Ino looked appalled. "What?! So you mean there's another one somewhere?"

_I suspected as much, but I hoped my suspicions wouldn't be right,_ Shizune thought, frowning.

"His chakra levels must be pretty high," the ANBU beside them spoke, "if he's able to control them by chakra alone."

"There are six bodies of Pain, so could there be six more controlling them," Inoichi suggested. "With the Yamanaka clan's ability, we're only able to control one person at a time."

"I don't know," Shizune admitted.

"Either way, if it's at all like our technique, he must be nearby," Ino stated. "Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to exert that much control."

"He must be hiding in the village somewhere," Shizune agreed. "We have to let Tsunade know so she can send a team to search for him—"

Shizune was barely able to finish her sentence as a dark figure jumped between them, his cloak trailing out behind him and a cloud of dust splaying about to further conceal his entrance. Even the ANBU was surprised, despite having been brought here to keep watch.

When the dust cleared, the ANBU, Ino, and Inoichi looked in horror at what they saw.

Shizune knelt on the ground, wide-eyed and with her back to their attacker. It was another one of the Peins, this one with long hair and an especially prominent piercing through his nose. His hand lay on her head.

"Don't make any sudden moves, or the girl dies," he stated, ringed eyes glaring coldly at the remaining three.

"Dammit!" Inoichi cursed. Shizune let out a shallow groan.

"Mizubaku…zan," the Pein said. Ino's eyes grew even wider.

"That's the same technique as Dad's!" Ino exclaimed. "He can read her mind within seconds, even without any equipment?!"

Only a few more seconds passed before the Pein spoke again.

"Looks like Naruto isn't here…" he trailed off and then repeated, "Mizubaku-zan."

Inoichi, Ino, and the ANBU all stared at the Pein with wide eyes, but with them so did the hokage, standing miles away on the mountaintop beside the tower. The Pein before her with six nose piercings and seven on each ear had just said those exact same words.

-

"What?" It seemed irrelevant, out of the blue even, but Tsunade had definitely heard it. The Pein in front of her had just uttered Naruto's location.

"Mizubaku-zan, that's the frog village, isn't it?"

"You bastard," Tunade growled. She didn't know how, but he'd found out.

"Tsunade, we should let him go, and use that time to strengthen our protection of the village!" the only female ANBU in the group, the one Tsunade knew as Uzuki Yugao spoke.

"And one last thing," Pein added, as if the situation could not grow any worse. "The chakra in your feet that is guarding against my technique?" How did he know? "I guess that means you know all about my powers." He continued. "Everything is meaningless in the face of overwhelming power. You great nations have proven that."

Tsunade glared, but remained silent at his next monologue, knowing it could be useful.

His tone changed from its usual even tone to accusing. "You think you're the only ones who matter. You think you can put off death, but peace has made you foolish and thoughtless. If you kill someone, someone else kills you. Hatred binds you together."

"Enough of your nonsense!"

"War brings pain and injury to both sides."

"The great nations have suffered, too, you know!" Tsunade retorted, thrusting her pointer finger at him. "I've had enough of your accusations!" Dan, Nawaki—she'd lost loved ones, too.

Pein turned his back to the hokage, as if he were ignoring her. "Don't make me laugh. I want you to feel Pain. To think about Pain. To accept Pain. To know Pain."

_Does he have something else up his sleeve?_ Why else would he be monologuing for so long?

Then he continued, "Those who don't know Pain can never know true peace."

And as soon as those words left his mouth, unbeknownst to Tsunade, one more chakra presence flickered out as her assistant's soul was pulled from her body by the mind-reading Human Realm of Pein.

Ino's eyes filled with tears as the dark-haired woman's lifeless body crumpled to the ground.

"SHIZUNE!"

-

"What is going on?" Konan demanded. Smoke from all the summoning dissipated throughout the area. All six Peins were reconvening at their initial meeting place. This couldn't be good.

"I'm going to do  _that_." The Animal Path, the only female Pein, spoke to her. With all the Peins here, the villagers were lulled into a false sense of security for the time being, but it would not last long.

"Don't! It'll shorten your lifespan!" Konan protested, concern evident in her tone.

"I will give the world more Pain." Somehow, Konan wasn't surprised that Nagato used Yahiko's body to speak to her this time. The only one he knew she couldn't refuse.

"So you're determined to do it, then." She didn't like it. She didn't like it at all.

"PEIN!" she could hear Tsunade yelling, even from the mountain tops, as the body of Konan's childhood friend formed a hand sign along with all the others around him.

"Summoning technique…" Konan grimaced, knowing what was to come, "SHINRA TENSEI!"

-

"Akira-san!" Sakura's voice greeted the Hyuuga girl as she rounded the corner. Finally, she'd found her way to the hospital, and this time  _without_  running into anyone from Akatsuki. The pink-haired girl stood in the room along with several other medics. Multiple hospital beds surrounded them, seemingly all of them occupied. Even as the original hokage's apprentice spoke to her, she did not cease healing the patient in front of her.

"Sakura," Akira returned the greeting and tried to ignore the kunoichi's questioning stare when she noticed the blood staining the Hyuuga girl's clothes.

"What happened?" she asked, turning back to her work.

"One of the Akatsuki attacked a clothing store I fell into." The blood wasn't hers, but rather from an old man's head injury and another woman who had been slashed across the chest. "I couldn't save everyone." Only some. That boy she rescued had still lost his mother.

"Well, there's plenty of people here that could use your help," Sakura said, summoning healing chakra to her hands as she moved to her next patient while Akira scurried over to another groaning victim. "I can't heal everyone at this rate!"

But, just as Akira was about to use her byakugan to diagnose the full extent of her patient's injuries, a low rumble ran through the building, shaking the ground beneath their feet.

_What the…_  Akira didn't realize what it was at first, but by the time she did, it was too late. The leaf village, not just its hospital, exploded into a mass of bodies and building material.

Akira summoned her chakra shield one more time, protecting herself from the initial blast. The shock wave still stunned her, and by the time Akira came to again, the once orderly array of medical supplies, hospital beds, and bleeding victims were strewn about the room.

Someone coughed, and Akira immediately recognized the large creature beside her as Sakura's slug summons before that same pink-haired girl poked her head out from the rubble. Just like Akira had, she looked about the room, eyes wide with confusion as she murmured, "W-what happened?" Tears filled the pink-haired girl's eyes, and although she didn't cry, Akira didn't feel much better. "How, why…?"

Akira reached out a hand to touch the pink-haired girl's shoulder, but her touch was rejected. The hokage's apprentice slammed her fists to the bloodstained ground, throwing back her head as she screamed, "NARUTO, PLEASE! HURRY BACK!"


	37. Chapter 37

"Are you alright, Hinata-sama?" The Hyuuga heiress blinked as her awareness slowly returned. The last thing she remembered was running along the street to help at the Konoha hospital, but now rubble of what once had been a building surrounded her. The stench of death hung heavy in the air. Where was she? This couldn't possibly be Konaha.

A cadet branch Hyuuga named Kou knelt beside her. Somehow, she was relatively unharmed, but judging by the way Kou held his arm and the awkward angle of his leg, he had broken both of them in the explosion.

"Yeah," she responded slowly, still feeling dazed. There were more important things to deal with than her slight headache. "We have to tend to your wounds, Kou!"

Her bodyguard vehemently shook his head. "It would be my everlasting shame if anything were to happen to you while Hanabi and Hiashi were away."

Hinata opened her mouth to argue, but her words cut short.

A new chakra flickered to life in the village of Konoha as a blonde figure invisible to unaided eyes stood atop the back of three enormous toads—toads that had once been Jiraiya's signature summoning.

_Could it be?_ Embers of hope began to light in the pit of Hinata's stomach at the feeling of that familiar chakra.

"It's Naruto…" Kou's eyes followed hers to the blonde ninja miles away from them. He moved quickly toward the hokage's mountain.

"No doubt about it, that's definitely Naruto!" Kou confirmed, and even he looked happy to sense the blonde jinchuriki.

"He's all alone," Hinata whispered. There was no way she could just stand here and do nothing. So, she took off running.

"No, Hinata!" Kou yelled behind her, and, out of respect for the man, she stopped.

"But he's fighting for the village!" she protested.

"If you join him, you'll just be a burden," Kou insisted. His eyes were sincere. "You'll only get in the way."

The Hyuuga girl faltered, balling her hands into fists. Kou was right; she would only get in the way. Naruto was much stronger than any of them right now. But that didn't change how much she wanted to help.

_Naruto…_

_-_

"All six are here," the small bearded toad beside Naruto spoke.

"Tsunade!" one of the larger toads called.

The blonde's face was matted and grimy and she panted from her fight with the supposed Akatsuki leader. She didn't even turn around as another ANBU called her title.

"I am the fifth hokage," she declared, standing tall, "and I will never forgive you for trampling on the treasures, the dreams, of those who came before me! As hokage, I will put a stop to you here and now!"

"Looks like you understand a little of my pain now." His tone remained infuriatingly even. "But I have no use for you."

The attack came at her from the Demon Realm this time. The hokage could barely manage to remain standing, let alone dodge. The ANBU she saw rushing toward her was not going to make it in time. She would have to take this hit.

"The one I want…" she heard Pein say.

Her face grimaced and her body tensed, preparing for impact, but it never came. Something hit, but it wasn't her.

"Is me, right?" All eyes widened as the topic of their conversation appeared, donning a new red coat with black flames at the bottom. A large scroll dangled from a string on his back, and marks from the sage chakra he used molded his eyes and colored his brow ridges.

"Naruto…" By the now, the hokage was on her knees, stunned by the impact. The ANBU previously trying to reach her had made it by now.

"There's no need for Konoha's hokage to deal with the likes of these guys," he declared, his tone more serious and mature than she'd ever heard. "You just go enjoy a nice cup of tea or something."

"Gramps, did you see those old, familiar forms?" another toad, much smaller than Gamabunta, spoke to the smaller bearded one.

"I sure did," the bearded one replied. "Looks like Naruto surpassed those who came before him."

"Uzumaki Naruto." Pein turned his attention to the jinchuriki.

Naruto drew in a breath. "Let's settle this once and for all!"

Five of the Peins assembled to attack, the one with Yahiko's body remaining toward the back.

"Gamaikichi," Naruto turned to another one of the giant toads. "Take Tsunade to a safe place!"

"Gotcha!" The giant toad crashed behind her. Tsunade felt the ANBU's hand on her shoulder. Despite the kind gesture, her supposed protector seemed startled.

_Even at ANBU, I guess you can still be surprised._

"Baa-chan, I'll take this from here," Naruto continued. He sounded so confident and mature. It definitely made her proud for him to call her "Granny." She could only imagine how Minato and Jiriaya would have felt. "Trying to fight while protecting everyone at the same time would just make things more difficult."

Tsunade glanced about, trying to remember all the names of the giant toads. The child of prophecy would save them, she had no doubt, but he would need assistance.

"All right, but I'll leave Katsuyu with you. She'll be of assistance." One of her smaller slug summons. Like the boy's frog summon's they were useful for information, but unlike his summons, this one could heal him.

The two smaller toads previously on the giant Gamaikichi's back jumped off onto Naruto, specifically where the large scroll draped along his lower back resided. While the smaller frogs did this, Gamaikichi lifted the hokage off the ground into one of his enormous webbed feet. She would be out of here soon.

The bearded toads spoke to her slug, but what exactly Tsunade couldn't hear. She didn't like what Naruto said next, but she'd known it was coming.

"This may not be the time to ask something like this," Naruto began, "but with the energy of nature flowing through me and my senses being heightened, I can sense the chakra of everyone here."

Tsunade, knowing what was to come, looked away.

"Is Kakashi-sensei away on a mission outside the village?"

The hokage's throat dried up, and she couldn't reply. Still, Naruto understood her.

"I see," he said quietly.

And, with that, she felt Gamaikichi's muscles clench as he prepared to jump. The next thing Tsunade knew, they were launched into the air.

-

"We're the only ones here who survived the blast." Akira, byakugan activated, grimaced as she delivered the news to Sakura. She'd suspected as much, but now it was confirmed.

"Dammit," the pink-haired girl swore. Tears flowed down her cheeks and Sakura buried her face in her hands. "Why? Why is Akatsuki doing this? What did Konoha ever do to them?"

Crying wouldn't do either of them any good right now, Akira knew, but she let Sakura have a moment. There had to be something else they could do, someone else they could help.

The ground beneath them began to shake again. Sakura was about to say something, but, byakugan still activated, Akira silenced her with the wave of her hand.

"It's not an explosion," she said shortly.

"Then what is it?"

As if to answer her question, a heavy object crashed into the ground behind them. It was a... toad? It carried another presence with it.

"Master..." Sakura spoke and Akira's eyes widened. Before any questions could be asked, the toad holding the hokgae in one of its giant webbed feet, more gently than Akira could have thought possible, lay the hokage onto the ground. Without hesitation, she and Sakura dashed over to their fallen teacher.

Understandably, Sakura was a bit faster than Akira. With the toad, Akira noted another ANBU who landed in addition to the hokage. Even Itachi's memories didn't recognize this person's chakra. Probably someone fairly new to the force.

"Tsunade-sama!"

"Sakura…" Tsunade's tone rasped, no longer bold and projected as it had once been. Her appearance jutsu was wearing off. The woman's two students knelt down beside her and, while Akira's scanned the woman's body with her byakugan for invisible injuries, Sakura clutched her hand.

"It's alright now," Tsunade breathed, her features worsening by the second. Akira and Sakura exchanged worried looks, but Akira shook her head, a signal that there was nothing they could do to stop it. The ANBU who had accompanied the hokage with the toad now stood watch at their side.

"Yes," Sakura spoke again. By now, the hoakge's hand looked the age it should. Wrinkled. Decrepit. Old. "Good work out there, Tsunada-sama."

-

"She's out cold," Sakura sighed, finally letting go of the hokage's hand as Akira scanned the area, glancing back and forth between that and Naruto's battle with Pein. "She's stable, but it'll be a while before her chakra returns."

"Naruto is doing well," Akira said. "You should be proud of him."

Sakura smiled. Nothing jovial, but a smile, nonetheless. "What about the other villagers?"

"A lot of them are dead." She already knew Kakashi was gone. Shizune, Daikoku, and several others from the academy had been lost, too. In the least, Kaname, Eri, and Riku were safe. They were the first presences she'd confirmed. "Your sensei is among them."

"Oh." Sakura's face fell, but this time she didn't cry.

"I'm sorry."

Even if Akira didn't know the full extent of Pein's abilities, something from Itachi's knowledge told her that despite Naruto successfully defending them, this war was far from over. The villagers didn't know, but Pein was only the beginning. There was still Sasuke and Madara and whatever else they had up their sleeves—but first, there was Pein. She was missing something from this first attack, but  _what_?

Having Tsunade unconscious did not bode well for any of them. She was the only one who knew the truth or had any idea behind the reason for this invasion. Without her, Akira was alone. She didn't have anyone to help her with this. There had to be something she could do, anything. So she completely changed the subject.

"Sakura, you stay with Tsunade-sama. I'll go look around the village to see who I can heal."

"I want to come, too!" she protested, but Akira shook her head.

"You've lived here longer and she needs you. Someone could still come after her and the more of you there are to protect her, the better." Akira motioned to the ANBU standing silently beside the Haruno girl. "With my byakugan, it'll be easier to find people who are injured. I won't be long. Promise."

It was a good excuse. This way she could help the villager and look around for clues at the same time without arousing suspicion.

"Okay. Just be careful. You've got more than just you to look out for." Sakura's eyes descended to the Hyuuga girl's abdomen, to which Akira smiled and placed a hand over her tummy.

"They'll be fine. Promise, I couldn't run that fast even if I wanted to." Akira turned her attention to the ANBU. "You be careful, too." And, with that, she was off.

-

"I've got it, I know where the real Pein is!" All eyes turned to Inoichi at the Yamanaka's declaration.

"You figured it out?"

"What do you mean?"

More people had joined their little circle of discussion. Now, it wasn't just Ino and what was left of Shizune. Their ANBU counterpart remained, still keeping watch, but now Shikaku, Shikamaru, and Shiho, a girl from the Konoha research lab with messy gray-blonde hair and thick swirled spectacles obscuring her eyes, had joined them.

"Yeah, it was when I looked into the mind of the Amegakure ninja Jiraiya captured," Inoichi replied. "It was his job to transport corpses."

"Transport corpses?" Shikamaru echoed.

"Yes, your words suddenly make it all clear," Inoichi continued. His expression turned serious. "Logically, the person sending chakra should be as close as possible to the one receiving it. Of all the towers in Amegakure, this man took corpses to the very tallest."

Those in the audience nodded, but still didn't seem to completely follow what he was saying.

"There was a rumor that Pein lived in the tallest tower, and the woman who appeared as Pein looked  _just_ like the body of the dead woman who had just been taken to the tower." He paused, still considering his words. "So, that tower must be the laboratory where those black chakra transmitters are inserted into the corpses."

"And what does this have to do with Pein's location?" Shikamaru inquired.

"It's the best location to transmit the chakra signals!" Inoichi said. "He'd have to be in the tallest building to transmit over long distances!"

"I see, so then…" Ino and Shiho jumped a bit when the ANBU, who had previously remained completely silent, spoke. "The real Pein must be in the highest tower location near Konoha."

Even with his broken leg, Shikamaru smiled now. "Okay! Then let's make a thorough search of anywhere high up."

"We should split into groups of at least two," Shikaku suggested. "If any of you find him, don't do anything rash."

"Try and make sure there's a detection ninja in each group, if possible," Shikamaru added. "That'll be faster."

"Right," Shikaku agreed. "Shikamaru, you stay here with Shiho and wait for further info."

It was subtle, but the research girl brightened ever so slightly at the Shikaku's words.

"I hate to admit it, but you're right." Not noticing Shiho's blush, the Nara boy's eyes rolled. "I can't move, after all."

"Okay, Katsuyu," the ANBU turned to the slug who had previously been sitting on Shiho's shoulder. "Let any survivors who are able to move know. The villagers will have to help us."

"All right, I got it!" the slug replied, its expression looking somewhat akin to a smile.

-

Akira hadn't been away from Sakura for long. A few minutes, maybe. Her head spun trying to make sense of everything as she jumped from broken structure to broken structure, this time without falling through anything. She scarcely had time to properly scan the area for injured people before a new presence appeared on her shoulder, and it wasn't human.

"Akira-san!" It was Katsuyu, one of the hokage's smaller summons.

"What are you doing here?" Akira did her best not to let the jump in her voice show.

"Inoichi-san instructed to me tell every villager I can to search every high tower in Konoha that they can! We think Pein may be hiding in one of those!"

_Of course!_  It all made sense now. Both the knowledge from Itachi and her own seem to click.  _That must be how Pein is managing to control all those bodies!_

"I'll let everyone know that I can," Akira promised, nodding.

"Be careful!" the summons said, and, as quickly as she'd come, Katsuyu disappeared.

_Of all people I'd expected to figure it out, I didn't think it would be Inoichi._  Still, Akira smiled to herself. Life was full of surprises.

And how right she was. Barely had she managed to pass what used to be Anko's favorite dango shop when another set of presences joined her—a set of presences she didn't quite detect until it was too late.

All she remembered seeing was a flash of khaki and a glint of silver before she lost her balance and crashed to the ground.

Her attackers were two men from what she could tell, but she wasn't entirely sure because their figures were obscured by flowing kahki cloaks complete with hoods to obscure their faces. Glimpses of what looked like ANBU masks peaked out from beneath their hoods while gloved hands each clutched a gleaming katana.

Whoever these masked men were, they were trying to kill her.


	38. Chapter 38

Akira didn't need the sharingan's predicting ability to know there was no way out of this. In her current condition, her reflexes weren't fast enough to block even one of the swords, let alone both of them. Even if she could, she wasn't fast enough to fight both of these men at the same time.

As the duo closed in on her, Akira did all she could and recoiled, prepared to summon what little chakra she had left, knowing full well she didn't have enough time to execute the rotation or even her chakra shield. In the least, they wouldn't hit her stomach first. But, just as she lost all hope, one more presence flickered to life on her radar.

"ROTATION!"

It was Neji.

One of her attackers stopped in time to avoid the Hyuuga prodigy's technique and the other ricochet like a ball off of concrete and slammed into a nearby pile of rubble.

Akira sat on the ground, still in too much shock to move. Her hands clutched her stomach as she stared at the back of her rescuer, who stood in front of her with fingers extended in a typical Hyuuga stance.

"Are you alright, Akira-sama?" Neji said, his voice deep and eyes fixated on his new opponents.

"Y-yes," Akira stuttered her answer as she staggered to her feet. Her mind had been in enough of a jumble from earlier and this certainly wasn't helping. She wracked both the knowledge from her own brain and as well as Itachi's—why were these ANBU attacking her?

Whoever they were, they didn't waste another second as they closed in on her again, this time in a different formation. But Neji would have none of it.

"Stay back!" he commanded, and, unable to do much else, Akira obeyed.

The one who had been thrown into the rubble, whose cloak was now the slightest bit tarnished, reached her first, only to have Neji knock him back with a palm to the chest, which the ANBU blocked. His teammate attempted to sneak up behind the Hyuuga prodigy only to be rear kicked in the stomach and further attacked with Neji's jyuuken.

"Sixteen, thirty two, sixty-four points!"

The ANBU burst into a cloud of smoke.

"A replacement?"

"Behind you!" Akira yelled, and Neji turned just in time to block the next attack, which was an attempted slice to his head. Neji sidestepped to avoid the ANBU's partner from stabbing him, as well, but the Hyuuga prodigy did end up with a shallow nick on his left side.

The first blood was drawn and now Neji was pissed.

The one Neji kicked was the first to go. Neji threw the kunai he'd been holding and, while the ANBU blocked it, he rushed in with another jyuuken. He hit his target before the ANBU had time to formulate a replacement.

The ANBU's partner became serious, as well, and abandoned his kunai in favoring of attacking them with a swarm of bugs.

_An Aburame?_ How had they not noticed that before?

Undaunted, Neji protected himself from the swarm with another rotation, dispersing the bugs and killing a good number of them at the same time.

The fallen ANBU had only just started to rise as Neji rushed toward the only ANBU still standing. Neji's timing was perfect as he landed on the ANBU just beginning to stand, and, using the fallen man as leverage, both knocked him down and launched himself at the other teammate, using the fallen man as a makeshift springboard.

_Creative,_  Akira had to admit. Neji had certainly been practicing.

As Neji headed toward him, Akira noticed the Aburame put his hands together and mutter something she couldn't quite understand. All she knew was that a few seconds later, an ominous purple cloud began to expand in the form of a smokescreen. Granted, Neji could still see using his bykugan, but something told her that if he breathed in one whiff of that purple cloud, Neji was done for.

She didn't need to yell anything for Neji to realize the same thing. In one swift motion, he lifted his shirt collar over his nose and mouth and dodged the first wave of poisonous insects, keeping his eyes locked on target.

Fear welled up in the Hyuuga girl as the spring-boarded ANBU began to rise again, his sight set on her. While Neji fought the Aburame, Akira settled into a stance of her own, knowing full well it was unlikely she would make it out of this fight alive.

But, she didn't even get the chance. Before she could so much as summon chakra to her feet and fingertips, the Aburame Neji had been fighting went flying through the air and straight into the man about to rush toward her. Akira glanced over to see Neji looking as if he had just thrown something incredibly heavy, which he had.

By the time both the ANBU were back on their feet, Neji was in front of her again, but something was different—one of their masks had cracked. Tufts of chestnut hair peeked through as the ANBU's mask chipped away bit by bit, additionally revealing pale skin and bright yellow eyes.

Neji stood, cocked and ready for the fight to continue, but it never came. Before either of them could so much as rush in, the ANBU whose face she'd gotten a glimpse of concealed himself with a gloved hand and the two of them disappeared just as quickly as they'd come.

Neji remained momentarily frozen in place, scanning the area to ensure the ANBUs presences had indeed disappeared—and they did.

Akira breathed a sigh of relief as her shoulders sagged. Whoever these ANBU were, they hadn't wanted her or Neji to see their faces badly enough to abandon a fight.

Neji relaxed a few second after her, turning back to Akira only for her to capture him in an embrace. Her swollen belly made it difficult to get close to him, but the point was still made.

"Thank you," Akira murmured, and with that she released him. Her eyebrows pinched in concern. "Who were those people?"

"I was hoping you would know."

Akira was midway shrugging when she noticed Neji tense and whip his head to the left.

"What is it?"

He turned to look over his right shoulder, and Akira followed his gaze. She saw it, too, but Neji was the first to say something.

"Hinata-sama!"

-

"Neji, where have you been?!" Tenten exclaimed as the Hyuuga prodigy rejoined his team in the Konoha forest, plus another person.

"Yeah, you just disappeared on us!" Lee added.

"That would be my fault," Akira volunteered, sheepishly raising her hand. "I was trapped beneath some rubble and Neji came to my rescue."

_Please buy it and don't question me, Neji,_  Akira mentally pleaded, making sure not to glance back at the Hyuuga prodigy. If she looked at him for confirmation, they may realize she was lying. Whatever those men's reasons were for attacking her, Akira knew it couldn't be good to spread that information to more people.

"Sheesh, at least tell us where you're going next time." Tenten frowned. "I mean, we could have at least helped you."

Neji looked about to speak, but Gai-sensei cut him off.

"It was very unlike you, youthful Neji," Akira noticed the Hyuuga prodigy twitch at his teacher's use of the word "youth."

"But he was brave enough to help a maiden in distress! That was incredibly youthful!" Lee countered.

"One way or another," Akira cut in, "we have a far more pressing matter at hand."

Neji's team looked at her questioningly and then the exasperated Hyuuga prodigy finally had a chance to speak.

"Hinata-sama is in trouble. She's trying to save Naruto from Pein!"

"Then what are we waiting for?!" Tenten exclaimed. "Let's go!"

-

"Did you find Kabuto?" Mitarashi Anko turned to her two temporary teammates as Yamato and Sai gathered by one of the tall old trees near the outskirts of Konoha. Sai poured over a summoning scroll while she and Yamato watched intently.

"I did," Sai replied, closing his eyes and forming a hand sign. However, the trio had little time to celebrate.

"This is bad!" Yamato suddenly exclaimed. Sai and Anko whipped their head to see a blatantly appearing number "six" on the jounin's palm.

"What is it?" Anko questioned.

As if he hadn't heard her, Yamato continued, "This can't be! He broke the seal? Six tails? This can't be possible!"

She and Sai immediately understood why Yamato suddenly shot to his feet, exclaiming, "We have an emergency. I have to go back to Konoha!"

-

_That chakra…_  Akira didn't like it at all. She didn't need Itachi knowledge to know it emanated from the nine tails inside Naruto. Worse yet, Hinata's chakra was weak. She was alive, but barely, and with the way Naruto was losing it, this wasn't good. Lee had been kind enough to stay near the rear of the group with Akira, who, understandably, couldn't move as quickly as everyone else.

"What is that chakra?" Tenten questioned as the group jumped from tree to tree.

Akira was thankful when she didn't have to answer.

"The nine tails," Neji said shortly. "We need to hurry."

They made it to Hinata's location within minutes, and, in that short time, that powerful, sinister chakra had somehow disappeared. But, far more pressing to Akira and the team, was a certain Hyuuga heiress's crumpled figure lying face down in the dirt.

"Hinata!" Neji was the first to reach her, but Akira and the rest of the team followed close behind, each of them kneeling down beside her. While Akira paused to catch her breath, Tenten turned the Hyuuga girl over to properly examine her wounds.

"Her wounds aren't fatal," Tenten declared, and everyone's shoulders sagged with relief. "Still, they could be if we don't hurry. She needs a healer."

"Got it covered!" Akira interjected, scooting forward on the ground to get closer to Hinata. "I'm going to need some space!"

"There's a wounded frog here, too!" Lee called. Something told Akira it was one of Naruto's summons from his fight with Pein.

"If I have enough chakra left after this, I can heal him, too!" Akira called, still not taking her eyes off Hinata as she fully zipped open the Hyuuga girl's jacket and summoned healing chakra to her hands. From there, she placed her glowing palms just above the Hyuuga girl's well-endowed chest. Hinata's wounds were deep, but Tenten was correct that they weren't fatal. Akira had fixed wounds far worse than this before. The process would just take time.

Neji was the only one who remained close to Akira's side. Even with her request for more space to work, he had scarcely moved an inch, but Akira didn't blame him. Hinata was his treasured person. He would do anything to protect her.

"She's going to be alright," Akira said, trying to give an assuring smile.

Still, Neji shook his head, all but muttering, "Why would she take such a risk?"

Akira knew the answer. Deep down, Neji probably did, too, even if he didn't like it.

_She really does love Naruto._ Even a foreigner like her could tell. But her next thought was filled with so much more lament.  _At least she was able to save the one she loves._

"We should find Sakura after this," Akira spoke up, changing the subject. "She'll know better than any of us what to do about Naruto."

By the time they reached Sakura, more of Naruto's toad summons appeared. The injured toad Lee discovered passed soon after they discovered Hinata, and members of what Akira could only assume was his family carried him away, mourning their loss.

Neji had insisted to be the one to carry Hinata, who was most definitely alive but still unconscious by the time they reached Sakura. Lee brightened ever-so-slightly at the sight of the pink-haired girl. Tenten glowered, and Sakura's eyes widened in surprise at the sight of Hinata.

"Is she alright?!" Sakura exclaimed, and jumped to her feet to properly meet them. There was a soft grunt beside the hokage's first apprentice, and Akira was additionally thankful to see that the ANBU from earlier was still there.

"She's only unconscious," Akira assured. Both Gai and Lee nodded in agreement with her.

"Akira-san did a wonderful job of healing her. The Fifth would be proud," Gai declared.

Along with Sakura and the ANBU keeping watch over Tsunade, there were different versions of Naruto's toad summons, both big and small, in addition to one of Tsunade's bigger slugs, also named Katsuyu like the others.

"Naruto-kun managed to suppress the nine-tails," the slug explained. "He's now battling the sixth and final Pein."

"He took back control himself." Sakura sounded astonished. Even Akira agreed that such a feat was a miracle for a jinchuriki fresh out of a traumatic event like today.

"Lee!" Gai spoke up, his voice commanding, "We're going to back up Naruto!"

"Yes, sir!"

"Please don't!" Katsuuyu interjected. "You'll only get in Naruto-kun's way!"

"But he can't possibly handle someone who destroyed the whole village on his own!" Lee protested.

"I think Naruto has a plan." Even if none of them liked it, Katsuyu was right. "Right now, we must all place our faith in him."

The wait wasn't fun for any of them. Between waiting for Hinata to wake up and anticipating news on Naruto, to say in the least, their group was restless. Neji cradled Hinata's still form, keeping an ever-watchful eye on her breathing.

To conserve her chakra, the group had insisted that Akira rest and Katsuyu take over her watch of Naruto's progress, which she hesitantly accepted. Lee had made the best point that exhausting her chakra now, even for something as simple as using her bykugan, would not be good for the two little lives growing inside her.

After what felt like an eternity, Hinata stirred in Neji's arms and at last her eyes fluttered open.

"W-where am I?" she stuttered. The mass of people crowding around clearly made her uncomfortable. But, as if all at once, her memory returned and the Hyuuga girl lurched forward, alarming her cousin. "Naruto-kun! Is he alright?!"

"Naruto's fine, Hinata," Tenten said, arms folded.

Hinata's eyes descended to the dried blood on her fishnet shirt beneath her also blood-stained lavender jacket, and then moved to Sakura, the nearest healer.

"Thank you for healing me, Sakura." Her voice had returned to its usual timid tone.

The pink-haired girl shook her head and motioned to Akira. "I had nothing to do with it. Akira-san was the one who healed you."

"Oh…" Sensing there was more Sakura had to say, Hinata looked at the ground.

"Still," Sakura continued, her expression turning stern, "you shouldn't have done that! You could have been killed!"

Before any further arguments could be made, Katsuyu interrupted everyone.

"Naruto defeated the sixth Pein!"

All eyes turned to the slug, both in joy and astonishment.

"He did it!" Lee exclaimed, slamming his fist into his opposite hand's open palm. "I knew he could!"

"How is he? Is he injured?" Sakura questioned, concern evident in her tone.

"He's exhausted, but he's fine," Katsuyu replied.

"Thank God." Hinata's shoulders sagged with relief. Tears glistened in her lavender eyes. Neji, whose hand hovered over hers, gave an encouraging squeeze. "Naruto, thank God…"

Admittedly, Akira felt relief, too, but her emotions were more mixed. Pein was gone. The sixth body of Pein that she'd grown so accustomed to seeing during her year at Akatsuki. What about Konan? Something about that body had meant  _everything_ to her. How was it right for them to feel happy while those who rallied to Pein's cause, for what she knew to be good reason, suffered?

_Still, he can't hurt us now,_  Akira tried to reassure herself, but something inside her that was likely a child squirmed. They'd made it this far. Whatever happened, Konoha was her first priority, not her emotional ties to Akatsuki.

"Where is Naruto now?" Gai's questioning tone broke the Hyuuga girl out of her thoughts and immediately turned her attention back to Katsuyu and the rest of the group.

"Right now, he's headed for where the real Pein is hiding."

"What? That's too reckless!" Neji protested. By now, he'd disconnected himself from Hinata and both of them were standing again. He turned to his cousin and Sakura for support. "Guys, let's go after him!"

"Right!" Lee agreed full-heartedly, clenching his fist in determination.

"But he doesn't want any help!" Katsuyu repeated.

"No way! He can't do this alone!" Neji insisted, to which Akira noticed Hinata smile. "He's already weakened. Take us to him!"

-

A lone orange and black figure walked across the Konoha forest, eyes peeled and listening for a sign—anything, that would point to what he was looking for.

It didn't take long to find the largest tree in Konoha. Frankly, it was quite amazing that no one had stumbled across it before. But, putting those thoughts aside, Uzumaki Naruto continued on, determined to put an end to the day's violence.

Up close, it seemed like the most obvious thing in the world that the largest tree in Konoha was covered with the one named Konan's paper jutsu, enabling their enemies—no, opponents—to come and go as they pleased.

Remembering the instructions Pein had given him, Naruto reached out his hands toward the paper-encrusted tree. Much to his surprise, it gave, allowing him to pull apart enough space to enter the fortress himself.

He'd run into Inoichi and Shikaku on his way here. Inoichi had tried to insist that he go back. Naruto supposed that he had Shikamaru to thank for Shikaku choosing to support him. Whatever that deer had said to his father, it had worked. He had to do this alone. Whether he was the child of prophecy or whatever that nonsense Grandpa Toad and the others were spouting, this was the right thing to do.

As soon as the blonde boy walked in, he immediately recognized the one named Konan staring him down with dead amber eyes, ready to defend herself if need be. The one next to her, however, looked far more nerve-wracking.

Dark red locks framed an emaciated face, half concealing a familiar ringed gaze with a figure to match. Black poles, resembling the ones that the God Realm had stabbed into him and his friends with earlier, protruded from the man's back while his tiny arms were concealed from the elbow down in some sort of cylindrical contraption, likely part of the device he used to control all of those bodies.

It was not at all what Naruto had expected, but, whatever happened, he had to do this.

"Stand back, Konan." For being as emaciated as he was, Pein had a commanding voice.

"Nagato…" the woman's gaze flickered to the nine tails jinchuriki for a brief second and then back to the one formerly known to him as Pein.

"Are you the real one?" Naruto hoped his voice sounded as commanding as the one named Nagato's had.

Not even bothering to answer his question, Nagato said, "So peace has arrived, eh?"

-

It was another horrendous waiting game, waiting for Naruto to come back. Even Hinata, sweet, mild Hinata, was getting fidgety. Akira didn't know how long passed. A few hours? But, even before Naruto physically came back, it was obvious they had won. Akira didn't know how—not even Itachi's knowledge knew how—but the dead began to rise.

Chakra presence after chakra presence that Akira had been sure was gone. Even Naruto's summoning toad Fukasaku began to stir and then sat up, causing his family to cry out in shock. All over Konoha, tears were shed and hugs exchanged as lives returned to those who had died.

"Impossible… this can't be happening…" Sakura murmured.

Miles away from them, Shizune sat up and rubbed her head, groaning. Ino, who had been kneeling beside her could only gawk while Shikamaru incredulously murmured, "What's going on?"

Inoichi echoed the shadow user's sentiments, to which Shikaku replied, "Looks like Naruto has taken care of things."

Next, Kakashi jolted into a sitting position, surprising Chouji and Chouza. Akira had been another one to sense his presence returning and, judging by her expression, so had Sakura.

The joy of their group only grew as two familiar presences closed in on them from the trees.

By now the place was crowding. Seemingly the whole village had gathered for the return of their new hero. How they'd all gotten here so fast was beyond Akira, but they had.

Naruto chakra was depleted, but not gone. Still, he was exhausted enough for Kakashi to be carrying him.

The blonde boy looked shocked at all the smiling faces directed at him, calling him a hero and congratulating him. Itachi's memories told her that part of this was because of the boy's former isolation as a jinchuriki. He wasn't used to praise from one person, let alone an entire village.

The shock wore off faster than Akira thought it would. Within seconds, Naruto had climbed off of Kakashi's back and was back on the ground again.

One of Tsunade's slugs latched itself onto Naruto's shoulder, probably telling him something along the lines of "Everyone knows about your heroism now," but Naruto didn't have long to process the information as hordes of new fans began to clutter him.

"Ow, don't shove!" Naruto exclaimed.

Although she didn't rush forward with the rest of the crowd, tears of relief streamed down Hinata's cheeks. Neji wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulder as he smiled, too. By the time Akira turned her attention back to Naruto, Sakura had pushed her way to the front of the crowd.

"Sakura…" she could see Naruto's lips move, but his awe was short-lived. Akira winced as Sakura's fist made contact with Naruto's gut, bending him over. Akira understood the sentiment, but still shook her head. Sakura said something to him, probably scolding, and then pulled the boy into a hug, her shoulders shaking with relief.

"Thank you."

With so many smiling faces, Naruto began to grin widely, especially as the crowd proceeded to hoist him onto their shoulders and further cheer. From pariah to savior, this boy's dreams had come true.

_He did it, Itachi,_  Akira thought, smiling to herself, though not quite as big as everyone else.  _You were right about him._ Her hand found its way back over her abdomen, where her last piece of Itachi grew more and more each day.

Somehow, they'd made it this far.

-

_Zuuzuzuzuzuzu_

A pair of golden orbs watched the celebration from afar as a grassy green head made itself visible in the thick branch of a nearby tree.

"I never thought Pein would be defeated," White Zetsu remarked.

"We'd better tell Tobi. Let's go." Black Zetsu said, and back to the organization they went.

"So that's what happened," Madara mused when Zetsu finished his story, both sides mostly matching up with the details. Kisame was there with them now, too.

"What will you do now?" White Zetsu questioned.

"We're going to need another pawn to replace Pein."

"Konan's not coming back," Black Zetsu added, hoping that wasn't what he meant. Madara, oddly enough, said nothing regarding the paper kunoichi and instead turned his attention to the former Kiri nin.

"Kisame, you find the eight-tailed beast. I have another matter to attend to." Madara's sharingan flashed and with that he was gone.

-

"I don't know when she'll wake up," Sakura lamented. They were in a medical tent, the best they could do given the circumstances, reserved specifically for the unconscious hokage. Akira, Shizune, Naruto, and Kakashi all circled around, attempting not to crowd despite how many of them there were. For once, Akira was actually thankfully for her protruding belly, considering it allowed her more personal space than the others.

"She used Katsuyu to protect the village and she's been unconscious ever since," Sakura explained, her eyebrows creasing. Naruto's joyous grin was long gone and by now he stared at the ground, murmuring the hokage's name.

Silence overcame the group and only lasted for a few minutes before Naruto announced that he needed to go outside, and Sakura followed him. Still, ever from inside the tent, Akira could hear them talking.

"There's so much I want to tell Tsunade!" Naruto blurted.

"Don't worry, I'm sure she'll wake up soon!" Akira could hear the strain in Sakura's tone, but Naruto didn't seem to notice. "She is the hokage, after all. She's a strong woman. She'll be fine!"

But before Naruto could reply, two new presences arrived, presences that Akira didn't recognize. Curious, she made her way to the entrance of the tent and peeked through the slit in the cloth door to see a well-built older man with glasses and spiky gray hair. A goatee and mustache framed his mouth, and his clothes and undeniable tan made him look like a construction worker or carpenter. Judging by the tools he carried, probably the latter. A dark-haired preteen dressed in a similar manner stood beside him, grinning at the blonde jinchuriki and pink-haired girl.

"I never thought I'd see you heroes again, Naruto!" the dark-haired boy called.

Naruto and Sakura looked confused, but only for a second before something clicked and Naruto exclaimed, "Inari and Tazuna!"

Akira jumped when she felt a hand on her back and turned to see Kakashi standing behind her. His expression beneath the mask was unreadable, but his eyes were kind.

"I'm sure they won't mind if you go outside and join them."

Somewhat embarrassed that she'd been caught eavesdropping, Akira nodded vigorously and the two of them did just that.

"I'm a carpenter now," the one named Inari said. "We're here to help rebuild Konoha."

"Heh, and I thought you guys came to say hi while I was here!" Naruto grinned.

"You look so pretty, Sakura!" Inari turned his attention to the pink-haired girl, and she blushed.

"Oh, really?" There was no mistaking the color in Sakura's cheeks.

"I'm sorry what happened with Gato," the one name Tazuna spoke again, and again, Akira didn't recognize Gato's name, "but, thanks to you, the Land of Waves is now a prosperous nation."

"So now it's our turn to help you!" Inari finished, a wide grin on his face and his right fist clenched determinedly.

"Inari, thanks!" Naruto nervously scratched the back of his head, clearly appreciative. Sakura laughed.

"Hard to believe you're here already," Kakashi remarked, making his presence known as he walked forward to join the group, leaving Akira by the entrance of the tent.

"Hey, Kakashi!" Tazuna greeted. "We came as soon as we heard Konoha was in trouble!"

"I see. Well, if there's anything you need, just let me know."

Tazuna's expression turned inquisitive and his eyes darted around briefly. "Where's Sasuke? I wanted to talk to him, too." And at the mention of the name, Akira's blood ran cold. Judging by their expressions, as did Naruto and Sakura's.

"Uh, the thing is… Sasuke's, uh…" Naruto stammered. He glanced at Sakura and Kakashi for support, but they offered none. "Sasuke and I had a fight, so he left the village for a while." Inari and Tazuna looked confused. "But," Naruto continued, "I'll bring him back soon! You can say hi when he gets back." He turned to his teammate for support again. "Right, Sakura? I'm sure Sasuke would love to see you again."

"Was this trouble some sort of love triangle?" Tazuna questioned.

While Naruto protested the older man's suggestion, the pink-haired kunoichi's expression looked just as lost as Akira felt, but Sakura quickly transitioned to a small smile, likely thankful Naruto had saved them the pain of explaining the whole story.

It didn't take much longer for Inari and Tazuna to apparently be satisfied with Naruto's explanation before they waved their goodbyes and got back to work with reconstructing Konoha. Even if she couldn't say anything, Akira's heart went out to the two as she saw Naruto's expression drop once Inari and Tazuna turned their backs, likely contemplating his defected teammate.

They stayed silent like that for a bit. More than likely, Naruto didn't even realize she was there with them, because he continued to say, "I understand now, how Sasuke felt." Akira couldn't help but listen intently. "I know what revenge is."

Sakura looked confused, but allowed him to continue. "I thought I understood him, but I didn't really. No wonder nothing I said to him got through."

"Naruto…" Sakura began, trying to be helpful, but he just kept talking.

"If I can't understand his pain, I can't laugh with him. No wonder he wouldn't even fight with me!" Naruto paused. "It might hurt a lot, but I want to fight with him for real this time, 'cause I want Team Seven to laugh together again, Sasuke included!"

Both Sakura and Kakashi smiled genuinely at this, but something still didn't feel right. It would take a great deal more to convert Sasuke to their cause than just understanding his pain. He would have to accept their care and actually realize their capacity to understand him. Even if they could understand him, if he wouldn't accept them, it didn't matter.

_Besides_ , Akira admitted. She was having a hard enough time as it was trying to forgive Sasuke for what he'd already done to her without even realizing it, let alone Naruto, Sakura, and all the other friends she'd made here.

-

"What the hell happened here? There are no guards and the village is in ruins." A large-breasted blonde woman with icy blues eyes and an angular haircut surveyed the ruins of Konoha in disgust along with her two teammates. Needless to say, Samui was not pleased as she questioned a Hyuuga scout who had simply happened to be nearby.

She had two teammates with her. Omoi, a dark-skinned man with shocking white hair, dark eyes, and the chronic urge to always have a toothpick in his mouth, and Karui, an equally dark-skinned woman with spiky red hair and bright golden eyes, who, for the time being, remained silent. The symbol on their headbands did not match the leaf symbol.

"It was Akatsuki!" The scout said. "We'll soon be on alert and strengthening our guard."

Karui sighed with relief at something, but Samui paid her no attention. "I require an audience with the hokage. I have a letter from the raikage."

Samui and her team were taken to the hokage, but it was not at all what they expected.

"What do you mean she's unconscious?" Samui demanded.

"I'll take the letter," Shizune, who had been with Tsunade the entire time in the medical tent, spoke up. "I'm her aide."

Samui ignored her, something she was apparently good at. "If you don't know when she'll wake up, let me speak to whoever's in charge in the meantime. I need an answer right away. It's urgent!"

"That woman is no longer hokage!" All heads turned as a new presence joined them in the hokage's medical tent. "I am the new hokage. I'll take that letter."

It was Danzou.

-

Padded paws of a canine tore through the area, barely touching the ground. They briefly skidded to a stop to turn a corner and before continuing, surrounding the two figures involved with a cloud of earth.

"There you are!" Kiba called out, and several heads turned to see the Inuzuka and Akamaru, who Kiba used as his transportation, bounding toward Akira and what was left of Team Seven.

"Kiba, what is it?" Sakura inquired, clearly concerned.

"Listen, just calm down and listen!" Kiba said, not even bothering to dismount Akamaru. His tone was frantic. "Tsunade's been dismissed as hokage!"

"Huh?"

"What?!"

Everyone was confused.

"The sixth hokage is some guy named Danzou!" After that, Akira barely heard a thing Kiba said.


	39. Chapter 39

_Danzou!? That monster has been pronounced as the_ sixth  _hokage!?_ Akira's stomach twisted in knots, and not just because she had two living things kicking around in there.

"I don't know him, but apparently he's pretty shady," Kiba added.

A chorus of "Danzou?" sounded among them, each with a different inflection.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Kakashi murmured, and, although he didn't know everything about the man, the copy ninja knew enough.

"That's not the only thing," Kiba continued, and a part of Akira didn't want to know how this could possibly get any worse. "The new hokage has given permission to dispose of Sasuke as a missing nin!"

Naruto looked shocked. Sakura's eyes glazed over, likely fighting tears. Akira's stomach only began to feel worse, but she wasn't surprised. Danzou had been vying for a chance like this, a chance to get rid of Sasuke now that Itachi was gone.

_Wait a second…_  Akira thought, triggering something in Itachi's memories. Those ninjas who'd attacked her—they'd been like ANBU, but not quite.  _ROOT,_ Itachi's knowledge told her. An organization composed entirely of Danzou's underlings.

That would make sense—Tsunade had fallen unconscious and Danzou hadn't just utilized that time to get rid of Sasuke, but also… her.

_He must have found out,_  Akira thought bitterly. It certainly didn't help matters with Tsunade being unconscious. But one way or another, thanks to Neji, she was still here. She spaced out for a moment, but not long enough to miss Naruto's outburst.

"What the hell do you mean?!" The jinchuriki yelled.

"I don't know myself," Kiba admitted. He was just the messenger.

"They're not willing to let Tsunade recover. It's not surprising," Kakashi stated. Ever the voice of reason, and, for that, Akira was grateful. "It's true that Sasuke's a missing nin. The usual punishment for that is death. It's only because Tsunade was so lenient that he hasn't been killed yet."

"I'm going to talk to Danzou!" Sakura declared, determination burning bright in her jade green eyes. But before Akira could say something to discourage her from doing so, Kakashi stepped in and placed a comforting hand on the pink-haired kunoichi's shoulder.

"Sakura, wait. Storming in there and yelling at him won't solve anything."

"But Tsunade hasn't even woken up yet! It's not fair!" Tears threatened to leave her eyes. "And then there's Sasuke! I can't stand by and just let this happen!"

"I'm going, too!" Naruto added, shooting a defiant look at his sensei. But unlike Sakura, he wasn't in range for Kakashi to restrain.

"Calm down both of you. You have to stay level-headed or it'll just make things worse."

"How can I be calm?! I won't let him lay a finger on Sasuke!" Naruto snarled.

"Danzou knows you'll react like this." Kakashi's hand was off Sakura's shoulder, but now he maintained eye contact with Naruto. "What are you going to do when you see him?"

"I won't attack him! I'm just going to ask about to change his mind about Sasuke!"

As much as Akira could sympathize with Naruto—hell, she'd  _been_ there—nothing they did could change this.

"I know you can't just leave it at that when it comes to Sasuke," Kakashi said. "The jounins may not have voted yet, but Danzou is still hokage for the time being. One wrong move and it could get you thrown in jail." The latter of which was a possibility Akira hadn't even considered.

But still, Naruto wouldn't listen.

"I don't care, I'm going!"

"Me, too!" Sakura declared.

"H-hey, guys…" Kiba began, mirroring how awkward Akira felt.

"Naruto, you have the nine-tailed beast within you," Kakashi stated, bringing up yet another good point. "That's why Danzou wants to keep you in the village. You'll be playing right into his hands. If that happens, you won't be able to look for Sasuke at all. Stay calm."

Naruto didn't look pleased, but, in the least, he was quiet now.

-

Tobi sighed to himself as he waited, having recently teleported onto one of the large tree branches of Konoha's forest. Sasuke and his teammates' were closing in, but they didn't sense him yet. Even after everything he'd been through, confrontations were still something he didn't particularly enjoy. But, when necessary, he did what he had to do, and this was certainly one of those times.

By now, he could see the four figures of Sasuke and his team. Upon spotting him, they came to a stop on one of the nearby branches.

"Shit, bad timing!" Suigetsu remarked, his gaze on Tobi. Karin looked confused, but said nothing.

"How did you know where I was?" Sasuke said, looking stern.

"Don't underestimate me. It's within my powers," Tobi said simply.

"What do you want with me now?"

"Taka is no longer a part of Akatsuki. We have no further use of you." Sasuke's team looked surprised, but the younger Uchiha remained stoic. Tobi continued, "I said I'd have to kill you if you betrayed Akatsuki, and you broke your promise to me."

"What are you talking about?"

"The eight-tailed beast."

"But we found the eight-tailed beast and brought him to you!" Karin protested.

"It was a fake." With his words, even Sasuke looked surprised. "The eight-tailed beast pulled one over on you. I'm really disappointed in you guys."

"So what do you want us to do about it? It's not our business anymore!" Suigetsu spoke up.

"No." Tobi said firmly. "You will finish your last job as part of Akatsuki. I don't care about the eight-tails anymore. There's something else I want you to do."

"What if I said no?" Sasuke's expression indicated he was ready to fight.

"Then you'll have to fight me to get to Konoha. And I won't let you pass."

"Then I'll force my way through!" Tobi braced for Sasuke's lighting sword attack, which passed right through him.

"It's a little late to go to Konoha," Tobi continued. "Your goal is futile now. Konohagakure no longer exists."

"What do you mean?" Karin demanded.

As if to answer her question, Zetsu appeared in the tree branch beside Tobi, half of his body melded into the bark. "I'll explain," his white side offered, but only Tobi could tell this because the Venus flytrap around Zetsu's neck was still closed, disallowing Taka from seeing the Aloe Vera's face.

"Who's that!?"

"Calm down, he's with me." Tobi was growing annoyed with this Karin girl. She must be an exceptional sensor for Sasuke to keep her around, despite being this obnoxious. He turned his attention to Zetsu. "So, who's the new hokage?"

Venus fly trap still closed, Zetsu said, "Some guy named Danzou." Tobi was not at all surprised, but Sasuke was pissed.

"Danzou… is hokage?" the younger Uchiha managed.

"That's right! He's one of the elders who drove your brother to do what he did." It was laughable how easy Sasuke was to manipulate to his advantage, especially like this. "And now he's the new hokage."

"What the hell happened in Konoha?"

"One of my minions, Pein, destroyed the village. But because you and Pein made such a commotion, the five kages have begun to move."

"The five kages...?" Sasuke echoed.

"They're holding a meeting."

"I'll explain the rest!" Zetsu chimed in.

It didn't take long for Zetsu to dictate the fall of Pein, nigh single-handedly through the will of one yellow-haired ninja named Naruto Uzumaki. Sasuke's expression said nothing, but Tobi knew the notion of his former friend being successful definitely irked him.

"So this Naruto defeated Pein all alone?" Suigetsu echoed.

"That's right!" White Zetsu said. "He's gotten really strong."

"Probably stronger than Sasuke now," Black Zetsu added.

"Heh, I don't care about that," Sasuke scoffed, although Tobi begged to differ. "The five kages are the problem."

"What're you gonna do? Konoha's gone," Suigetsu stated. "Danzou's your target, right? If he's gonna be at the meeting, maybe that's where we should head." Sasuke did little else but glare, understandably unnerving the former Kiri nin. Karin only glared at him to follow Sasuke's suit. "W-what? Am I wrong?"

"We'll go to the meeting and kill the kages. Our plans have changed," Sasuke declared. Tobi couldn't exactly say he was impressed, but, once again, he wasn't surprised, which was good. Unpredictability was never a good thing in war.

"Good," Tobi said simply. That would have to suffice for now.

"So where exactly is this meeting?" Karin inquired. Finally, a semi-useful question from the likes of her…

"Zetsu." He turned his gaze to the plant-like creature.

"I'll lead you," his white side said, and separated from himself in what someone not used to the sight would probably consider a grotesque manner, causing even Sasuke to recoil. Only discolored scar tissue remained where the rest of either Zetsu's body should have been.

"Follow me!"

Team Taka obeyed, but Tobi knew they had their reservations.

"Can we trust them?" Tobi's sharingan noted Juugo, the first he'd spoken so far, murmur to Sasuke as they jumped away.

"Let's just see what happens," the younger Uchiha replied. "If he tries anything funny, I'll just use Amaterasu on him. There's something I've been wanting to test out, anyway."

At this, Tobi had to resist the urge to chuckle. That boy had no idea exactly who or what he was up against.

"That went well," Black Zetsu interrupted the silence that had previously been Tobi's thoughts.

Still, Tobi disagreed. "No," he said. "I can't believe Nagato used his rinnetensei like that. It was supposed to be for me." Tobi shook his head, genuinely disappointed. "What a betrayal."

"I'm surprised you accounted for the possibility of Nagato's death."

Tobi shrugged. It was true that he planned for the worst, but that didn't mean he felt happy about it. "Just in case. It's not what I would have wanted, though. Uzumaki Naruto…" he seethed at the name, thankful that he could openly be who he was at least in front of Zetsu. "That brat has thrown a wrench into my plans."

"What are you going to do?" Zetsu questioned. "Will you make a move?"

"I think I've had enough of being cautious." Going along with the emotion, Tobi extended his hands in a greedy pose, palms outstretched. "I think it's time to hurry up and implement my Mooneye Plan."

-

Akira stayed in the medical tent area. Even if she lacked her headband, which she'd left at home that morning, she had at least changed out of her tattered civilian clothes. After a bit of rummaging, she managed to find something in her maternity size, even if it was just a dark pair of pants that fit just below her bulging midsection and a baggy blue shirt. Sakura and Naruto had left already, saying they had some important business to attend to, and Kiba had run off to tell others about Danzou's newfound power.

It made her sick, really. The fact that that man had managed to find his way into power after all this time. He didn't deserve it. But, regardless of that situation, Akira had duties to attend to here.

Even with Pein's resurrection jutsu, there were still many injured ninja and civilians. Wounds were inflicted from accidents or panicked citizens who didn't understand what was going on, or worse yet, shinobi, who actually carried weapons. Surprisingly, there was little rioting with all that was going on, but she and the other healers still had a significantly steady influx of patients.

There were easily twenty medical tents erected. Without a functioning hospital, it only made sense. The hokage had her own tent, which was the most heavily guarded, but there were plenty of others, too. There were tents spread out for minor injuries like cuts and bruises and, as the tents clustered closer together, the injuries intensified from breaks and lacerations to vital injuries and head trauma.

Most of Akira's time was spent working with breaks and fractures, which lay in the middle of the crisis spectrum. It made sense, considering she had the byakugan, which allowed her to skip the X-ray process. Still, she'd been on her feet for hours by now without a break. Her ankles were swollen to the point of being almost numb, and, as much as Akira hated to admit it, she was having great difficulty running from patient to patient as fast as she needed to.

It wasn't until she'd been midway treating a broken arm for some unfortunate chuunin that her supervisor, named Kaori if she recalled correctly, pulled her aside.

"Hey, Akira!" she called. Kaori's eyes were light brown and her hair just a bit lighter, pulled back in a bun with one strand hanging between her eyes. "You got a minute to go grab us some more bandages?"

"I would, but I've gotta finish setting this break!" Akira called, not bothering to turn her head as she worked. "Gimme a few minutes?"

"Take you time!" Kaori said, but, rather than walking away, she came a bit closer until she stood right next to Akira and her patient. "Also, don't be afraid to take your time in getting those bandages. Looks like you could use a break."

Akira smiled her gratitude, secretly praising the heavens despite her fairly understated reaction. She wouldn't necessarily say that she rushed in finishing the chuunin's makeshift cast, but she was definitely glad when it was over.

"Please just be careful what you do with that arm," Akira advised, specifically making sure to catch the boy's gaze. "I don't want to see you any earlier than a week from now for your checkup."

The boy nodded and mumbled something under his breath, but other than that, gave her no trouble. And, just to be sure that she wasn't missing some obvious detail after he left, Akira glanced about the area to ensure she wasn't neglecting anyone with a grievous injury before scurrying out of the medical tent for her much-needed break.

The supply tent containing the bandages Kaori asked for resided on the opposite end of where she was, and, because of that, Akira didn't push herself. But, as she was walking, she sensed some rather unexpected chakra presences, and, being curious, altered her course only slightly to investigate.

"Maybe Sakura should take a look at you," Akira heard a familiar voice say, and with quiet foot steps—the best her current figure would allow—she peered into the slit from the aforementioned medical tent to see Sai. With him were three other presences: Naruto, Kakashi, and Yamato.

"I don't want to have to explain this," Naruto said, and Akira looked to see that, save for the boy's trademark orange and black jumpsuit, his face was barely recognizable. Just what the hell had happened? "Besides, I heal quickly, so it's okay."

Just like before with Inari and Tazuna, Akira noticed Kakashi one eyed gaze turn to where she stood at the entrance of the tent. Akira felt her face heat up. Trying to look casual, she entered the tent. Her movements were awkward, but only Kakashi seemed to notice.

Naruto was on the floor, sitting up in a makeshift bed with a pale blue blanket pooled around his waist. Sai knelt beside him while Kakashi and Yamato both stood. They all looked tense.

"Do you need a healer, Naruto?" was the first thing she said. Not much else she could have done to break the ice. Admittedly, she was curious as to what happened, but Akira of all people would respect the boy's decision if he didn't want to tell her.

"Nah, I'm oka—" he began, but Sai of all people interrupted.

"That'd be great," the pale boy cut in. He'd been the one attempting to bandage the jinchuriki and, by the looks of it, failing miserably.

They four of them kept talking while Akira carefully knelt down beside Naruto and set to work on healing him. Whatever they were saying, it seemed unimportant enough for her to hear.

"You'd better rest for a while," Kakashi stated. Okay, still sounded normal enough.

"I have to go see the raikage!" Naruto blurted, causing Akira to jump from what she was trying to do, which was remove Sai's poorly applied bandages.

_Then again,_  Akira thought, mentally sighing. Just a few more untangles and the bandages were free. Then, both her hands lit up with healing chakra. Whoever had done this had really done a number on the poor boy.

Kakashi, seeming unphased, replied, and likely not for the first time that day, "What'll you do when you see him?"

"They'll be holding the conference soon!" Yamato added. Akira couldn't help but look questioning.

_Conference?_ she mentally echoed. Who was? Konoha's council? Who was even left?

But then Yamato continued, "Every village has placed restrictions on missions and leaving the village." Looked like this was far more than a Konoha-wide ordeal.

"I'm gonna convince him to forgive Sasuke!"

Akira let her expression drop and her eyes narrow at the mention of the younger Uchiha's name. Sasuke—right. That stupid,  _bratty_  child who did nothing but make the lives of those who loved him unnecessarily harder. Whatever was going on, of course it involved him. Itachi had already suffered enough. As had Sakura, Akira knew, even without directly questioning the girl. Naruto, too, but in a bit of a different way—still, none of them more than Itachi.

She could tell herself all she wanted that, good or not, Itachi had chosen the life he led. He'd told her one time, in the afterglow of one of their precious moments, that even with all his mistakes, he couldn't see any other way that he could have done things.

_"Besides,"_ she remembered him saying,  _"you're here."_

After that had been pleasant, though. The warmth of his skin and the taste of him still resonated in her mind. Her expression must have read as much, because Kakashi was giving her another odd look. In the least, Yamato and Sai didn't notice.

"You don't have your seal anymore!" Yamato argued, and this much, Akira understood, remembering the additional near disaster caused from Hinata's brush with death. "Besides, in the last battle, you got all the way up to the eight tails! You're lucky the seal worked and held back the fox, but what about next time? Not to mention, I have to help rebuild the village! I can't be here with you all the time!"

"I met the fourth hokage." The room went tensely silent at Naruto's reply, making Akira feel even more awkward. But Naruto was still not yet healed, so through pursed lips, Akira continued healing and Naruto kept talking. "He's the one who kept me from becoming the nine-tailed beast."

"What do you mean the Fourth is—" Yamato began.

"Not much is known about the nine-tails seal," Kakashi interrupted, turning to Yamato. "He must have put some of his energy into Naruto at the end."

"He told me the guy with the mask from Akatsuki was behind the fox attack sixteen years ago!" Naruto exclaimed. "And he was so strong, not even the Fourth could do anything against him!"

Thanks to Itachi's knowledge, Akira had already known this, but that did nothing to help the situation. She couldn't even let on that she knew. In the least, she was almost done healing Naruto. Just a few more minutes and she could get the hell out of here…

_What a way to spend my break,_ Akira mentally lamented, doing her best not to let her expression show at least this emotion.

"The Fourth said that guy's behind everything!" Once again, nothing new for her, but Kakashi and Yamato clearly didn't know. "If Sasuke joined Akatsuki, then he's probably using Sasuke, too!"

Now admittedly, that last part was something new.

_Sasuke joined Akatsuki?_ That wasn't good. It didn't surprise her that they had allied, but the younger Uchiha fully joining the organization had been something she hoped wouldn't happen. Just how under Madara's clutches was this kid?

Kakashi nodded knowingly. By now, they seemed to have forgotten she was there. She was done healing Naruto now, but with the heat of the conversation, she didn't feel right walking across everyone to get to the door. Not to mention, with how difficult it was for her to get up like this, all she could do was kneel awkwardly at Naruto's bedside, hands clasped in her lap.

"It's as Jiraiya feared," the copy ninja said. "That's who was behind the attack sixteen years ago. He had the sharingan, and Madara is the only Uchiha missing nin who hated Konoha that much and had the power to control the fox."

"When it comes to Madara, I'll believe almost anything," Yamato murmured, and it took great control for Akira not to scoff in agreement.

_You can say that again_ , she settled for thinking.

"Even that he's still alive," Yamato finished.

"Madara…" she heard Naruto say, and only because she was so close to him. "Who's Madara?" he spoke more loudly this time and looked up at Kakashi. Akira was surprised. Did he honestly not know?

"The former leader of the Uchiha clan," Kakashi explained. "He's said to have been defeated by the first hokage. We'll have to tell the elders." And she'd agreed with everything he'd said up until that point. What could those idiots possibly do to help? Still, the copy ninja turned to the pale boy. "Sai, you go tell the hokage."

Just what exactly did Kakashi have planned?

"Uh, okay." Sai looked just as confused as Akira felt, but nonetheless, he obeyed. Even so, Kakashi wasn't done.

"Naruto!" he turned to his student next, his tone commanding, "What exactly did the Fourth tell you?" Naruto looked confused until Kakashi added, "Fathers usually have things to say to their sons."

Akira shifted awkwardly, but Naruto's face, now fully healed, broke out into a smile and he laughed.

"He said he had faith in me!"

-

Miles away in a dimly lit room, two khaki-cloaked figures knelt ceremoniously before the newly elected hokage, who sat in a regal-looking chair purposely elevated several steps above them.

"Fu, Torune, remove your masks. There are no masks allowed here," Danzou commanded, and in one fluid motion, two cloaks were removed, but, Danzou noted, only one mask. "Report."

"Our assigned target got away," Fu stated. "There was… interference."

"How difficult can it possibly be to kill a woman in her second trimester amid a village-wide disaster?"

"The jounin Neji Hyuuga interfered," Torune spoke up.

"You're telling me two ROOT members failed to fight off a single jounin?"

Neither of them replied.

"Perhaps I should recruit him," Danzou muttered, clearly unhappy.

"Hyuuga Neji broke my mask," Fu admitted. "Saw my face."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. It would have drawn too much attention to eliminate him, as well."

"Excuses will  _not_ be tolerated." Danzou's only visible eyes was narrowed. But, true to their training, Fu and Torune's expressions remained void of emotion. "Luckily for you two, I have a much more important mission for you."

Silence.

"Despite this apparent…  _mishap,_ I have selected the two of you to be my bodyguards for the meeting with the five kages. Each of us is allowed two guards, no exceptions."

Recovering quickly, Fu inquired, "How should we arm ourselves?"

"I'll leave that up to you." These two were especially fortunate he'd made up his mind a long time ago regarding who would guard him. Usually he wasn't this lenient.

"Yes, sir!"

"Torune, set some of your men to watch Naruto. I do not think Sai will betray ROOT for Naruto, but just in case. And Fu, replace your mask!"

"Yes, sir!"

"Make sure the nine-tailed beast is unable to leave the village. Right now, he is our top priority." If he got his hands on the nine tails, nothing could stop him.

-

Everyone had been surprised after Kakashi's constant lectures on being careful and thinking through things at his sudden decision to support Naruto in finding a way to speak to the raikage. Although, considering he volunteered Yamato for the job to help him, it sort of made sense.

Kakashi disappeared right after Sai and Yamato, not giving an explanation. Naruto thanked her one last time for healing him and then did the same, leaving Akira momentarily alone in the tent to resume her duties. But before that, she took another moment to let all she had just learned sink in.

So Sasuke had joined Akatsuki. She wasn't exactly one to criticize, but in her defense, she hadn't joined willingly.

_Itachi, what am I supposed to do?_ Was there anything she could do aside from tend to the injured? Tsunade was unconscious! No one would believe her if she just came in spouting that the Uchiha massacre was a conspiracy and the only—known, Akira reminded herself—Uchiha left was trying to destroy the very same village that had caused the death of his family. People would just think it was her pregnancy hormones talking or something of that sort.

She was about to go back, she really was. She'd even located a spare crate of bandages to bring back to Kaori and the other healers. But something told her to stay.

_There's got to be someone here who will believe me._ Akira closed her eyes and took a deep breath. There had to be something. Someone.

Itachi was dead. Tsundae was still unconscious. Her friends were on the other side of the village. She was running out of people who knew.

Out of the group she'd just been with, Naruto didn't know her. Itachi's knowledge on Yamato was limited, and considering Sai was a member of ROOT, he most definitely had connections to Danzou, and she ran the risk of dying should he find out anything. Not that he was a particularly trustworthy-looking person, anyway. That only left…

An image of silver hair flashed through her head. Back from the night her village had been slaughtered, he'd been there, with Itachi. He'd been the first person she'd talked to in Konoha. He'd remained calm and level-headed even in the process of Sakura and Naruto yelling at him. She knew he was strong, even without watching him fight. And those were just her memories.

From Itachi's memory, she saw a mismatched red eye from a fellow Uchiha. There were bittersweet memories from ANBU days and thoughts of regret upon post-Akatsuki meetings.

_Well, may as well scan,_ Akira thought with a sigh.  _Byakugan!_

Oddly enough, he was still close.

_Here goes nothing._

_-_

A hawk ascended from the heavens. Sasuke recognized the bird as the same one he witnessed upon deciding their new team name. Either way, the Land of Iron was certainly cold. Each of them wore black hooded Akatsuki cloaks, which, although warmer than they looked, did not solve everything. Zetsu's white half wore barely anything and somehow didn't seem cold.

Snow was falling, which made sense considering they were in the mountains, but it was still a temperature whiplash for him compared to the forest where they met Tobi. But whether he liked it or not, this was the best route they had.

As if it were planned, the ascending bird landed on Juugo's arm and cawed three times before the tall man turned back to Sasuke.

"There's a route from the west that's not well guarded," Juugo said.

Sasuke's expression remained stoic. He turned to the obnoxious redhead following them—obnoxious, but talented. "Karin, we're going," he said. "Keep an eye on the guards' chakra." This was going to happen. He would have his revenge. Pein may have usurped him from his plan to destroy Konoha, but Sasuke could still have this.

Karin's expression lit up and Sasuke resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

"You mean I'm going, too?!" she exclaimed, clearly excited.

He further fed her ego by saying, "Now is when I need you most."

While Karin basked in the joy of being both included and useful to him, Sasuke turned to the plant-like creature Madara had given the team to get this far. He started by confirming, "Zetsu, is it?"

"What of it?" Sasuke was still incredibly unnerved by only having the white half with them while the creature's black half did Kami knows what with Madara.

"I need you to tell me which one is Danzou." His tone remained firm. "You're coming, too."

It did not take long for Karin to begin complaining.

"Wouldn't it have been easier to lie in wait until he comes? I'm so tired of this…"

In the least, Suigetsu bit back with a remark of his own.

"Are you stupid? If the hokage is late, they'll know something happened!" The shark boy waved his hands for emphasis. "They'll be samurai reinforcements all over the place, and the other kages might come after us, too!"

"We don't even know what his powers are," Karin said flatly, looking at Suigetsu, but her expression turned sweet and smiley when she looked at Sasuke. "So the best thing to do is wait for him to leave and attack him on his way home, right Sasuke?"

"Just concentrate on the guards' chakra, Karin." She looked shot down, but he didn't care.

"Ha ha, you got in trouble!" Suigetsu teased.

"Shut up!"

Much to Sasuke's relief, Zetsu—or rather the half of him that was with them—was the next to speak.

"Wow, Sasuke, you have a lot to put up with," he remarked. Whatever attempt it was at making Sasuke feel better, it didn't work.

"The most important thing is that we find out which one is Danzou." The Uchiha's eyes narrowed at the white creature. "You'd better not lie."

"I can sense chakras," Karin cut in. "If you lie, it will disrupt your chakras." She pointed her finger at Zetsu for emphasis and gave a cocky smile. "Besides, I've got my eye on you, too, so don't forget it."

"I won't lie," Zetsu assured, his expression blank. His pale skin practically blended in with the snow. "Danzou is no friend of ours."

-

"Kakashi-san!" The copy ninja looked up when Akira called his name, and she immediately felt guilty and slightly awkward. Again. Two unconscious figures lay behind a cluster of bushes in front of the copy ninja, but she stopped short when she recognized their cloaks. Their chakras weren't the same as the men who attacked her and Neji, but their uniforms were.

They'd been following someone, but not her. Something told her it was Naruto.

Within a split second, Kakashi covered his sharingan eye with a now slanted hitiate. If it weren't for Itachi's memories, Akira probably wouldn't have noticed his lengthy scar and mismatched iris without using her her byakugan, which she'd deactivated by now.

"What is it, Akira?" Kakashi turned his back to the unconscious duo to face her. She felt a seed of doubt beginning to form, or maybe that was just the twins sensing her dread, but either way she steadied herself.

"I want to help," she said simply.

"Akira, I appreciate you healing Naruto, but you can help best back in the medical tents. People need you there." His tone remained even and the one eye she could see was kind. Compared to what Itachi remembered of him, Kakashi had significantly mellowed since becoming a teacher. Regardless…

"I want to help find Sasuke," she specified.

Kakashi shook his head, then orally verbalized, "No."

"Why not?" Who knows, maybe she could get out of this without explaining everything. "Naruto needs all the help he can get. Not to mention my bykugan is extremely helpful for scouting."

"It's not that I doubt your ability, Akira. Tsunade would not have accepted you as her student were you not skilled. But you have more than just you to think about." Akira winced when Kakashi's eye flicked down to her baby bump. She instinctively shielded the area with her hands. "Sasuke is dangerous."

"I know."

"More than you know. With the way he is now, he won't go easy on you just because you're pregnant."

She was going to have to use  _that_  wasn't she? If she wanted to be of any help in this war, she had to. Akira took a deep breath, and beneath all that covering, Kakashi was likely raising an eyebrow, wondering why this crazy Hyuuga girl was wasting his time.

"I know more about Sasuke than you think," Akira finally said.

"What exactly? Did Sakura tell you?"

"No. That's not what I mean." She reached into her weapons pouch, or at least the one she'd snagged to hold her spare weapons and medical supplies at the hospital. Out came her necklace, and on it, Itachi's ring, which she disconnected.

Doing so quickly before she lost her nerve, she seized the copy ninja's hand pressed the ring into his palm. Her whole body shook by the time he held the jewelry up to his single eye to properly examine.

_Here it goes._ If it had been good enough for Tsunade, she could only hope it would be good enough for Kakashi, too. Honestly, she was lucky enough that the hokage had returned it to her in the first place.

" _Where_  did you get this?" Kakashi's tone was the tensest she'd ever heard, at least from her memories.

Rather than answering his question, Akira said, "I know why Sasuke didn't return to Konoha after killing his brother." Judging what she could see of his expression, Kakashi knew where she was going with this, but Akira said it, anyway.

"And the reason I know about Sasuke," Akira began, "is because I'm carrying his brother's child."


	40. Chapter 40

All things considered, Kakashi reacted well. He didn't speak for at least a full minute, his fingers wrapped around Itachi's ring while she waited. It wasn't until he handed her back the ring and waited another few seconds that either of them said anything.

"So Itachi is the twins' father?"

Akira nodded, feeling a mix between pride and shame. Pride, because Itachi's old friend, if he chose to believe her, could finally know the truth behind Itachi's actions, and shame because she'd waited this long to say anything.

"The Uchiha massacre was an order—Madara told Sasuke about it when Itachi died, and he didn't take it well. Long story short, the Uchihas were starting a coup with the intent to begin a war, but the Third didn't want that, so through a serious of unfortunate events which I'm sure you remember far better than I do, Itachi was orded, mostly by Danzou, to annihilate the Uchiha clan and take the fall for Konoha—"

"But he spared Sasuke," Kakashi finished, to which Akira nodded vigorously. The copy nin brushed a finger to his chin in a thinking pose.

Akira feared the worst that perhaps he didn't believe her, but then he said, "I will admit I found the Uchiha massacre very out of character. I knew there were problems within the clan but I didn't think…" he trailed off. "Obito never mentioned them."

"He died before seeing the full brunt of what happened," Akira explained. Kakashi gave her another questioning look. Probably surprised that she knew who Obito was. Then he asked her something more unexpected.

"Where do you come into all of this?"

"Before he died, Itachi put a knowledge transfer jutsu into this ring, intended only for me. I knew a lot about this already, but everything really gelled after that."

"I mean, how did you find out?"

Akira began to fidget. This was going to be harder than she thought.

"Akatsuki kidnapped me to be their healer," she finally said.

"Is that how you met Itachi?"

"Not exactly…" She fidgeted some more. "He was gravely injured near my village. I found him and didn't know who he was at the time."

"So Akatsuki found you while you were with him?"

"Not… quite..." Akira managed, her facial expression grimacing. "It's a long story. Longer than we have."

He appeared to buy that much, because next he said, "I assume Tsunade knew?"

"Just her and my friends from the Whirlpool Village, although they're still trying to learn the politics of Konoha at this point. They didn't know Itachi for long."

"This changes everything," Kakashi sighed, running a fingerless gloved hand through wild silver hair. "With the way Sasuke is now, I don't think it would be wise for him to know about you."

Akira nodded. Her smile was sad. "I know. It would change nothing."

"Then what?"

"With your influence, you could tell the right people the truth about Itachi. If Naruto knew what was motivating Sasuke, maybe he could actually have a chance at helping him. Not just that, we know about Madara."

Kakashi paused to think for a moment.

"You should return to the hokage's tent. Sakura and Shizune are there. Tell them I sent you."

"What about my duties here? Kaori just sent me on an errand to get some extra bandages and so I could have a break."

"They will make do without you. This is far more important," Kakashi said calmly. "I'll use a shadow clone to give Kaori the bandages and inform her of your change in orders. She will understand."

-

Five figures huddled together, in a passageway situated beneath the kage's meeting place, their chakras cloaked. They were all here now.

"We have been waiting for you," one of the figures above Zetsu and Team Taka said. Sasuke couldn't tell who. He did know, though, that the kages were sitting around a curved wooden desk, a seat reserved for each of them while their respective bodyguards stood behind them. The Daimyo for the Land of Iron sat in front of them at a separate desk. He looked odd with his wrinkled face, long straight hair, bandaged head, and pointed mustache, but he was hardly Sasuke's main focus.

Zetsu lightly nudged Sasuke's side. "That's him, the old man in the middle," he said in a low voice and then motioned with his head.

"So that's Danzou…" Sasuke's sharingan glared up at the bandage-covered elder. This was one of the men who had driven his brother to do what he did.

"Place your hats on the table," the Iron Daimyo said. The kages obeyed and the Iron Daimyo continued, "You are all here because the raikage called this meeting. My name is Mifune. I will be your moderator. The meeting will now begin."

_Some peace,_  Sasuke thought, frowning.  _This is pathetic._  How dare these people waste his brother's sacrifice!

"Eh, where'd he go?" Karin's remark caused Sasuke to momentarily break concentration, but before he could scold her, he found the reason for her outburst: Zetsu had disappeared on them.

"Heh." Sasuke shook his head. Madara probably had something up his sleeve. "Don't worry about the Aloe Vera." He turned to Sugietsu and Juugo. "Just focus on the mission."

-

Obito held a hand sign. He sat beneath a snow-covered pine tree outside the kage's meeting place, using a mind's eye jutsu to watch.

The young kazekage Gaara, the one he recognized as a former jinchuriki, was the first to speak. Understandably, this angered some of the older kages, but to Gaara's defense, he held his own. They started off right away with talking about Akatsuki. But, just when things were starting to get interesting, Zetsu reappeared before him. Had the plant creature been able to see beneath his mask, he would notice the Uchiha was smiling.

"Are you ready?"

Tendrils extended from where limbs were supposed to be on the missing half of White Zetsu's body, balancing him as he responded, "Yes."

"Begin!"

-

Needless to say, with conflict brewing even before the very start, the kage's meeting did not go well.

The raikage became so angry that he smashed the table in front of him. In the least, it gave Sasuke a glimpse of the man's abilities. One punch with that kind of power and anyone would be done for.

They kept arguing. After Akatsuki, it was about becoming allies and who would be in charge.

When the current began to turn in Danzou's, Sasuke's blood boiled. That man didn't' deserve to live, let alone command armies from the five major nations.

_Madara, where the hell is your signal?_ If possible, Sasuke's frown deepened.

He lost interest in the rest of the conversation, trying to save his energy for the upcoming fight. That is, until one of the mizukage's bodyguard's mentioned Uchiha Shisui and pointed at Danzou.

Now, they had his interest.

"Hokage, let me see the eye beneath those bandages!" the bodyguard said. Understandably, everyone was confused.

"What's going on?" the tsuchikage demanded.

Sasuke only grew angrier at the bodyguard's next words. "Apparently, his right eye was stolen from Uchiha Shisui and implanted."

_That bastard!_  Not only his brother, but his brother's best friend?!

The bodyguard continued, "Shisui had the power to get into his opponent's head and control them. It's one of the most powerful eye technique! His opponent's wouldn't even realize they're being controlled!"

"Hokage…" the raikage with very clear anger problems turned to the former elder. "Are you controlling Mifune?!"

"My own right eye is a souvenir from a battle with a Hyuuga," the body guard explained, backing his argument. "I can't judge you on that account, but my right eye saw through the illusion placed on the fourth mizukage, so you can't fool me."

"YOU BASTARD!" The raikage stood back to his feet, towering over the man as he continued yelling. Sasuke hand twitched for his blade, unwilling to allow anyone to usurp his revenge. But before Sasuke could do anything, something else happened.

It began as a soft rumble beneath the floor boards, but before anyone could do so much as question, a deformed white figure burst through the floor boards.

"HELLOOOOOO!"

It was one of the Zetsus. It explained where he had gone, but just what the hell did Madara intend by all this?

The kages scrambled to their feet, ready for a fight.

"Now what?" the raikage grumbled.

"Akatsuki?" Danzou said.

"It would seem so," the tsuchikage agreed.

"Uchiha Sauke is here somewhere," the Zetsu clone said, yellow eye bouncing wildly and sharp teeth bared. "The question is where?"

-

Naruto lay crumpled on the ground of a small hotel in the Land of Iron. He'd come all this way—Kakashi-sensei and Yamato had done so much to get him here and he couldn't even convince the raikage to pardon Sasuke. Maybe he shouldn't have let Akira-san heal his injuries. In the least, his injuries could have been an appeal to pity.

Sighing, Naruto turned onto his side, facing away from the window. For once he just wanted to lie there and mope, but fate would not have it.

"Shall we have a little chat, Uzumaki Naruto?" The jinchuriki's eyes widened at the speaker's voice. That chakra—Madara!

"You!" In a split second, Naruto was on his feet, ready to fight with a shadow clone summoned and spinning chakra in his original's hand.

"Rasengan!" Something crushed beneath his jutsu, but it wasn't Madara.

"A rasengan, eh?" The Uchiha chuckled. "You know full well it won't work on me."

By the time Naruto turned his head, Madara was behind him, poised to attack. But before either of them could do anything, a wood jutsu imprisoned the Akatsuki in thick wooden rails around his limbs and midsection. Madara wasn't going anywhere, but before Naruto could get any closer, crisscrossing wooden bars appeared before him as well, stopping him.

"Naruto, stay still!" It was Yamato's voice and of course his jutsu.

Another sound rang out, cutting Naruto's reply short. The familiar chirping of Kakashi's chidori resounded through the area as the copy ninja fixed his hand behind the Uchiha's head, threatening to strike should he even considering struggling.

"Nice move, Hatake Kakashi," Tobi said, not turning around frankly because he couldn't. "You're fast."

"I won't let you get your hands on Naruto that easily," amid the commotion, the sharingan users focused in on each other, "Uchiha Madara!"

"You must have heard me, then, right? None of your attacks will work on me, Uchiha Madara." He repeated the alias, just for good measure.

"So... you admit you're Uchiha Madara?" Kakashi said, his natural eye still closed.

Yamato spoke next. "I don't know whether you just disappear or turn into a ghost or what, but if you want to catch Naruto, you have to be solid, so that's what we aimed for. This is my territory now!"

"Ha! I don't think it will be so easy. I have a plan, too, you know. I just want to talk for now."

"Talk?" Kakashi echoed. Surprise showed clearly on his face.

"Yes." Tobi turned to Naruto. "How did you make Nagato betray me? Naruto, I'm curious about you."

Still frustrated at the day's events, the blonde retaliated.

"That doesn't matter! What are you gonna do to Sasuke?! Tell me about Sasuke!"

"Sasuke, eh?" For a moment, Naruto feared that the man would choose to taunt him rather than actually answer, but his fears were short-lived. "All right, I'll tell you. About a man eaten up by the ninja world's hatred and bitterness." He paused for effect, his sharingan glowing menacing red as tomoe spun, matching Kakashi's. "About Uchiha Sasuke!"

-

"Let's all search for Sasuke!" Zetsu repeated, successfully riling the room.

The raikage was, of course, the first to openly react.

"WHAT?!" His pale thick eyebrows pinched together as his mustache and goatee twitched.

"Sasuke?" Gaara had a much calmer reaction as opposed to his siblings who, although not quite as expressive as the raikage, still looked alarmed.

"He…" Temari began, trailing off.

"What is he doing here?!" Kankuro finished.

"The one with the sharingan," the mizukage spoke, also managing to remain calm. "The one who killed Haku and Zabuza?"

Around the rest of the room, Danzou, although more upset than he looked, said nothing, while those from Iwagakure muttered among themselves.

"Who's he?" Akatsuchi inquired to his thin, dancer-like counterpart, who bore eyes with a hauntingly similar shape to a certain blonde clay nin.

"A member of Akatsuki, I'm pretty sure," she answered.

But, once again, the raikage had to steal the room with him bombastic temper.

"Where is Uchiha Sasuke?!" he bellowed. "Answered me!" He strode forward to seize White Zetsu, bodyguards C and Darui close behind him. "I you don't answer me, I won't go easy on you!"

"Oh, fine, I'll give you a hint!" For having his neck in a single-handed chokehold, Zetsu was surprisingly calm as he used what was left of his head's available movement to motion. All eyes followed to area where Team Taka hid beneath the floor, observing the meeting in what used to be secret.

"C!" The raikage turned to his blonde bodyguard. "Let's get started!"

"Yes, sir!"

"Now, there's no reason to kill him!" the mizukage cut in, her green eyes narrowed. "If you capture him, you may be able to get some valuable intel on Akatsuki," she attempted, but it was no use.

"There's no one in Akatsuki who would betray it," Gaara countered. "They're all hardcore." And he would know better than anyone else.

The Iron Damiyo spoke next, turning to his two bodyguards, both intimidatingly muscular men. One, the shorter of the two, was bald with slanted eyes and a deep crisscrossing scar extending from the middle of his forehead to the beginning of his chin. The other was just a bit taller with a nearly matching scar also positioned on his forehead. Bushy black eyebrows threatened to overtake his only slightly larger eyes while tufts of equally dark hair grew in splotches on his balding head. "Okisuke, Urakaku, give the order for everyone to search for Sasuke."

"Hey, you with the white eye!" the raikage called to Ao, the same man who had spoken of Uchiha Shisui. "Keep an eye on the hokage!"

Danzou looked especially displeased at the raikage's statement. Paying the pseudo-hokage no heed, the raikage proceeded to increase the already-incredulous amount of property damage he caused and punched through the floor. But, true to Zetsu's word, Sasuke and his team were revealed.

"C, Darui, let's go!" the raikage called.

"Heh, sorry about the table… and the wall." The dark-skinned bodyguard laughed nervously, attempting an apology to the rest of the room.

"Hey, Darui, forget about that! Let's go!" C snapped, and the duo disappeared after their leader.

"Good grief. How rude!" the tsuchikage remarked, frowning. "He always was an unruly child," the old man stated, referring to the raikage. "That hasn't changed since he became kage."

-

It took every ounce of control Sasuke had not to outwardly react as rubble flew in all directions from the raikage's punch to the floor.

What the hell was Madara trying to prove with this? Was  _that_  supposed to be the signal? Completely giving away their location and any chance they had at a surprise attack?

"It was him…" Juugo seemed the calmest out of them all at this turn in events. Karin on the other hand, had something to say.

"What is it, Karin?" Sasuke questioned.

"The samurai are starting to move! They know we're here!"

_Well, no shit,_  Sasuke made no effort to hide his eye roll. Word spread quickly around here. Even Suigetsu could sense all the chakra presences closing in on them. Chakra presences with  _swords_. It was only seconds before Sasuke heard footsteps and the familiar  _shink_  of unsheathed weaponry.

"It's no use. There are too many! They'll find us and capture us for sure," Suigetsu stated, glancing over the statue concealing them. They hadn't ventured far from their position below the meeting room. "That bastard Zetsu. I won't forget this!"

The samurai were in plain sight now—horned helmets, heavy arms, and raised blades. More unexpectedly, Sasuke recognized a familiar blue glow surrounding the serrated steel of the men's weapons.

"Destroy!" one near the front commanded. A leader, perhaps?

"Samuri can control chakra, too?" Karin spoke what Sasuke was thinking. Their plan was going to shit faster and faster with each passing second. They needed to act  _now._

"I had no idea they could use chakra like that," Suigetsu agreed with Karin in the meantime.

"Oh, Sasuke!" Karin cried, more loudly than the Uchiha would have liked, considering the situation. "What are you going to do?"

With a mental sigh, Sasuke rose to his feet and unsheathed his blade, emerging from their hiding place as his team watched.

"I'm really pissed off right now," the Uchiha stated. His sharingan blazed. "Come at me," he said to the army of chakra-using samurai before him. "I won't go easy on any of you."

And, with that, the battle commenced.

"Neither will we!" the same leader-type who had spoken earlier, perhaps not a leader but just a talker, threw the first barrage of weapons. Sasuke smirked, focused his chakra, and allowed his reflexes to do the rest.

"He deflected it?!" A second samurai spoke. About time.

"That looked like our technique," another said.

Sasuke basked in the glory of their confusion. Orochimaru had been the one to teach him that technique. Perhaps the perverted snake hadn't been completely useless after all. Although Sasuke didn't have the curse mark anymore, Itachi's transferred power had given him enough vaguely similar techniques, only better. These samurai had no idea what they were in for.

Behind him, Juugo murmured something to Karin. If it weren't for his sharingan, Sasuke wouldn't have noticed. Still, Sasuke didn't mind. It wasn't like he needed the backup right now, anyway.

The Uchiha poured another surge of chakra into his blade and activated Susanoo. The chakra-encased figure began to form behind him, bones first and looking terrifying for those who had never seen it before, which included the rest of his team.

Not knowing how this new technique worked, three samurai charged in for another attack, and Sasuke didn't have to lift a muscle to kill them. Susanoo did it for him. Their blood splattered onto his face, but he hardly cared and just kept staring ahead, daring the others to follow.

He'd never killed this many people in one sitting before, and he wasn't about to stop now.

With Susanoo in full use, the rest of the samurai did not last long. By now, Juugo had come to join him in the fight and just in time, too. Three new chakra presences approached, and one of them was a kage.

A wall that had previously stood between Team Taka and the kage's meeting exploded, flinging rubble and bodies of fallen samurai throughout the room. Sasuke looked up to see the dark-skinned raikage and his bodyguards. They looked pissed.

"Brat!" the raikage bellowed. "I'll teach you to fear my anger!"

Not wasting a second, Sasuke charged forward.

"Sasuke, don't rush in alone!" Juugo tried to protest, but Sasuke hardly heard him. The curse mark was already overtaking the taller boy's face and whatever remained of Juugo's calm side would vanish with it. This was going to be one hell of a fight.

Sasuke closed in on the raikage, but one of the man's bodyguards, the one with dark skin and fluffy white hair, blocked his path. "Suigton mizujinheki!" he yelled, and Sasuke opted to dodge the technique rather than try to copy it.

In one quick breath, the bodyguard spat easily a pond's worth of water into the air, much like Sasuke's Goukakyuu no jutsu, only with water. But try as he might, Sasuke failed to dodge the technique as he intended.

The wave hit him like a full body punch and knocked the Uchiha backward, neutralizing any attempt at eye contact. While the guard uttered the follow up jutsu, "Raiton kankgekiha," Sasuke activated a lightning jutsu of his own, successfully cancelling the two.

Despite the water, Sasuke landed back on his feet, weapon raised and matted hair sticking to his pale forehead. Both his team and the raikage's jumped away to regroup.

"Boss, our intel was correct. Looks like it's lightning-based," Darui said to the raikage. Lightning encased the kage's massive figure as he menacingly clutched his left hand, ready to strike.

"He can use fire, too," the blonde guard added. Sasuke's eyes narrowed at the man's obnoxiously accurate intel. "He'll probably follow it up with a Katon. Darui, be ready to use another Suiton."

"Right!"

"Those are Kumogakure jonins," Juugo murmured from behind him. "The one in the middle is the raikage. This won't be easy." As he spoke, Sasuke pulsed chakra into his weapon to create lightning.

In turn, the blonde sensor began performing hand signs.

"Something's coming!" Juugo said.

Their next opponent declared, "I'll stop them in their tracks!" and then yelled, "Raigen Rakochu!" as his entire body illuminated with a blinding white light. Or, at least what would have been had Sasuke not caught the man in an illusion.

While Juugo cringed, Sasuke stared ahead into the blonde man's dark eyes. He won that battle, but the victory was short lived. Their other two opponents appeared on either side of him, ready to strike.

"You may have seen through the illusion, but it's too late now!" the raikage declared. The man's fist plummeted toward Sasuke's head, but never quite made contact. Instead, it ricocheted off of something, something metallic. When the dust cleared, Suigetsu stood over him, straining, but the strike was blocked. The former Mist nin grunted as he reinforced the blade with his other hand, the raikage's angry gaze boring down on them both. From behind them, Juugo pitched in by blocking Darui's attempt at a strike, using one of his mutated limbs as a shield.

The moment didn't last long, and, with the raikage's powerful strike, Suigetsu's blade snapped and the three of them shuffled backwards.

"He'd have torn my arms off it they weren't made of water!" Sure enough, the boy's limbs had converted. "Gah, dammit! Look at my sword!" Perhaps "in half" hadn't been the best description for what had become of the boy's weapon. It was beyond in half. More than three quarters of the blade had been demolished from blocking a single strike.

"Looks like the crack it got from the eight-tailed beat finally gave in," Juugo remarked. Suigetsu glowered at the reminder of their previous failure. However, they didn't have time to squabble as the raikage chased after them.

"You guys, I don't need your help," Sasuke stated.

"That's the thanks we get for saving your ass?" Suigetsu's eyes narrowed and then the former Kiri nin sighed. "Guess I shouldn't have expected anything else from you."

Sasuke paid him no heed. Rather, his attention focused on the dark-skinned bodyguard speaking to the blonde one. His sharingan read the man's lips.

"C, check the area and see if he's got anyone else with him," Darui instructed. "I don't want them to keep popping out of nowhere."

"There should be one more," the blonde apparently named C replied, "but I'll be hard to fight if I'm not concentrating on that."

Darui gave the blonde an indifferent stare. "I don't need you. The boss and I can take care of it."

"Karin would have been able to find Danzou, but it's too late now," Suigetsu pointed out, momentarily drawing Sasuke's attention away from the Kumo nins. "She'll probably hide her chakra."

"The guy in the back's a sensor, too," Juugo pointed out. "We'll just have to kill him, too." The curse mark's originator raised a mutated fist. "I'll do it."

"You're gonna need back up, buddy, for the guy's teammate," Suigetsu frowned. Juugo grunted, and, with that, Sasuke's teammates were gone, leaving him to fight the raikage on his own.

-

"Liar! That's not true!" Naruto bellowed, slamming his fist on the wooden cage standing between him and the Uchiha.

Yamato had a much different response and chose instead to react in quiet awe. "It can't be…" he murmured, his dead eyes staring off into nothingness.

Kakashi seemed oddly unphased, which made Tobi curious— _very_  curious. Nonetheless, he followed up with, "We can't discuss Sasuke without first discussing Itachi."

As if he were playing a part, Kakashi said, "Quit fooling around! I don't believe you!"

"No, I'm not lying," Obito assured. "That's the truth about Itachi. He died for Sasuke and for Konoha."

Unsurprisingly, Kakashi's left hand lit up with lightning chakra from his previous raikiri.

_The same jutsu that he used to kill Rin,_  Obito thought bitterly.

"What do you mean?" the copy ninja demanded. "If that's true and Sasuke knows it, then why would he work with Akatsuki? He should follow Itachi's wishes and return to Konoha!"

"As Sasuke's friend and teacher, you guys think you know him, but you don't understand him at all." Tobi looked away, not even bothering to give these Konoha nins the privilege of his full attention. You've got it all wrong." Naruto especially grew angrier by the second, which only served to amuse him further. "Sasuke is the real deal. He is a true avenger!"

"Did you do that to him?!" Naruto resumed his previous activity of beating the wooden bars that stood between him and Akatsuki's true leader with his fist. It was futile and the boy knew it, which only made the scene all the more amusing.

"No, I didn't." He would say it as many times as it required. Although Obito did lie and deceive others often, this much was true, and nothing Naruto did could ever change it. "He chose it himself."

Yamato looked resigned. Kakashi, still suspiciously calm. And Naruto…

"LIAR!" the nine-tails jinchuriki slammed his head this time, likely injuring himself in the process.

Had the wooden bindings not held him in place, Obito would have shrugged. "I took a gamble, not knowing whether Sasuke would choose to follow Itachi's wishes or choose revenge against Konoha. He chose revenge. That just means in his heart, he was always one of us."

Naruto collapsed to his knees, his head aching and likely his heart even more. Tobi continued, "Right now, Sasuke's goal is vengeance against Konoha for what they did to the Uchiha clan and to Itachi."

Naruto leaned against the cell, head drooping.

"Why… why…?" he repeated, like a mantra. "Why did this happen to him? Why did he turn to revenge?"

The boy's persistent ignorance was beginning to annoy him. He'd been like him once, ignorant, full of hope, but life had beaten that out of him—losing Rin had beaten that out of him. He stole another glance at Kakashi.

"Sasuke had no choice. This is the hate-filled destiny of the Uchiha clan. It's a curse that has followed us for generations."

Naruto's head perked up at this, but only slightly.

"Hate-filled destiny?" he echoed. The jinchurki's voice grew more passionate. "Curse?!"

"Yes, the curse of the hatred that began long ago with the founder of the ninjas, the Rikudo Sage, the sage of the six paths."

"The Rikudo Sage?" Kakashi echoed this time. His sharingan eye slanted dubiously. "He's nothing but a myth. The Rinnegan is just a mutation."

And being able to correct Kakashi on both genetics and a little history was just an added bonus.

"The myth was based on real events. The Rikudo Sage preached the way of the ninja and tried to bring peace to the world, but, when it was still but a dream, his time came." There he went with explaining things again. He seemed to spend a lot of his time doing this. "The elder was born with the sages 'eyes' and was gifted with powerful chakras and spiritual energy. He believed that might he possessed was the key to peace."

No one said anything or corrected him, so Obito kept talking.

"The younger was born with the sage's 'body' and was gifted with his life force and physical energy. He believed love was the key to peace." And even all those years ago, it was a stupid belief, and a stupid belief it remained. "On his deathbed, the sage had to choose a successor, and this eternal curse of hatred was born from that decision."

"What do you mean?" Of course, Naruto was the first to question him, and leave it to him for it to be a stupid one.

"The sage believed," Obito explained, "that it was the younger, not the elder, who was best suited to be his successor, and chose him. Convinced that he should have been chosen, the elder could not accept the decision, and his brother attacked him."

Naruto looked horrified, but history was history. Not much had changed between then and now.

"Time passed and though their blood had thinned, the two brothers still warred with each other. The descendants of the elder were called 'Uchiha,' and the descents of the younger were called 'Senju.' My battle with the first hokage, Senju Harashima," he began, slipping back into his mental role of the man who saved him, "was fated."

For once, Naruto said nothing.

"This is only the second time we've met," that Naruto was aware of anyway, "but I can tell the fire of the Senji clan dwells within you, Naruto. I can see the first hokage within you. Though dead, he still lives on. He was my rival, and I admired him." Tobi paused for effect, his voice fluctuating as he emphasized this last phrase, "And I  _hated_  him, more than anyone else."

His former teacher would be proud. Obito's impression of the first time Uchiha Madara had told him this story was spot on.

"Senju and Uchiha. Fire and Hatred. Naruto and Sasuke." The elder Uchiha chuckled. "You two have been chosen by fate. Revenge is the Uchiha clan's destiny, and Sasuke has taken on the hatred of the entire clan, and he will inflict that curse's hatred upon the world. Unlike you, hatred is Sasuke's weapon, his friend, and his greatest strength.  _That_  is Sasuke's dogma. Someday, Naruto, you will have to fight Sasuke. Or rather, I will make you fight Sasuke. This fated battle has been long in coming. I will use Sasuke to force people to acknowledge the Uchiha clan!"

"Sasuke isn't your toy!" Naruto retorted.

And so the banter resumed.

"Do you think you can change Sasuke's heart as you did Nagato's? I think you're the one who's out of line, Naruto. If you want to control people's hearts, you have to use the darkness within them. Nagato was just too easily influenced."

Naruto growled. "You and Nagato are nothing alike! He may have been going about it different, but in his heart, he wished for peace. Considering the war you started, you clearly don't!"

"Heh, you're right." First time for everything.

Kakashi spoke next, and Obito could feel his blood boil.

"If all you want to do is make people acknowledge the Uchiha, then why do you need the tailed beasts?" he questioned. Ever the intelligent one. "What the hell are you really after? What do you want?"

"Well, if you must know…" Tobi's sharingan spun as he trailed off, "it is to become complete."

"Complete?" Kakashi looked confused. Meanwhile, alarm showed plainly in Yamato's typically expressionless features. "What do you mean?"

"There's no use in telling you. There are other, more effective places to have this conversation." In a dramatic movement of finality, Tobi activated his space-time jutsu. His body transformed into a spiraling portal. "It's been fun chatting," his voice resounded through the area, although his body was nearly gone, "See ya!"

He had a meeting to attend.

-

Akira made her way back to Tsunade's tent as fast as her swollen ankles and aching joints would allow her. Her brain hardly registered all that went on. In the least, Kakashi knew now. There was one more person she could trust and another powerful ninja she could rely on.

It took nearly twenty minutes, but Akira made it to the hokage's tent. She sensed Sakura and Shizune, as Kakashi had mentioned, but someone else was there, too. Someone she didn't trust.

_Sai…_ What the hell was he doing there?

Three guards stood outside the tent. Two of them she didn't recognize, but the third was Nara Shikamaru, the lazy genius. He, in the least, seemed to recognize her.

The first two guards stopped her, but, rather than acknowledge him, she locked her gaze with the deer chuunin and said, "Kakashi sent me. My name is Hyuuga Akira. I'm the hokage's second apprentice."

Akira was thankful the boy didn't have a cigarette in his mouth like she usually saw him. The last things her twins needed after a day like today was exposure to second hand smoke. But despite her request, the deer nin didn't budge.

_What, is Kakashi's word not enough for him? He knows who I am._

Before she could insist that Shikamaru hold up the tent flap and allow her to enter, Akira stopped short, and her question was answered. She could feel the tension emanating from the enormous tent, even from just being outside. Everyone standing outside the tent, including the other two guards, could hear the entire ordeal loud and clear. Sakura cried while Shizune, likely still standing vigil at an unconscious Tsunade's bedside, yelled at Sai.

Just for good measure, Akira activated her byakugan.

"Naruto's not doing it just because he promised Sakura!" Shizune cried. "He wants to save Sasuke for himself, too!"

Akira rolled her eyes, and thankfully no one paid her enough attention to notice.

Sai, with his usual nerve wracking smile, responded, "Of course, I think so, too." He held out his arms for emphasis. His face contained more emotion, real emotion that wasn't just fake smiling, than Akira had ever seen from the pale boy. "But, Sakura and I…" he trailed off. " _Everyone_  relies too much on Naruto."

Sakura, whose presence stood several feet in front of the pale boy, didn't respond. Tears rolled down her cheeks as Sai continued, his expression downcast. "Lately, when I look at Naruto, I've been able to feel it, his sadness."

Shizune said nothing, but she didn't disagree.

"And when he thinks of Sasuke," Sai resumed, his gaze fixed on Sakura, "there's a heat coming from his gut, and I know that's anger."

Shikamaru looked away at Sai's words, and even Akira felt something drop in the pit of her stomach that definitely wasn't one of the twins.

"For Naruto's sake, for Konoha's sake, we need to do something ourselves instead of always replying on him. Sasuke is—" Sai began, but of all people, Shikamaru lifted the aforementioned tent flap and interrupted with an opinion of his own. In her surprise, Akira's byagkuan deactivated and she was able to witness the conversation firsthand.

"Sai's right," he said. All eyes turned to the Nara boy, including Sai's, although Sakura kept her head bowed and only glanced up briefly.

"Shikamaru…" Shizune murmured and rose to her feet, as well, not so much in an attempt to greet the deer ninja, but in order to join the conversation. No one seemed to notice Akira was there yet. If they did, they said nothing.

"We're not kids anymore," Shikamaru stated, hands buried dejectedly in the pockets of his olive green flak jacket. "We will stop Akatsuki and we will stop Sasuke."

The room went silent, but only for a moment.

"I'm here to get permission for Team Seven," Shikamaru began, and, at this, Akira raised an eyebrow.

_So he wasn't out there on guard duty?_

"P-permission?" Shizune stuttered. "You mean—?"

"That's right." His eyebrows pinched, indicating effort. "We can't let war break out between Konoha and Kumo just because of Sasuke." He went on to explain, "The other side will want their revenge as well, and if me and Chouji get killed, this time our parents will get involved and it'll be all out war." He paused. "According to the messengers from Kumo, Sasuke is already being treated as an international criminal. If he keeps working with Akatsuki, the hatred toward him will only increase."

Akira shifted uncomfortably at Shikamaru's last sentence involving Akatsuki.

_How is this fair? I've helped Akatsuki. Captured or not, it was still me doing it. Tsunade never treated me like a criminal, even after I lied to her about my medical records._

About the twins…

"I think we need to take care of Sasuke ourselves," Shikamaru said simply, although the content of his words was hardly simple. The young genius turned his attention to the pink-haired girl, who still had her head down. "You get what I'm saying, don't you, Sakura? That's why I've come, to ask your permission."

Sakura sniffled quietly, and Akira noticed more of her tears dripping to the ground.

"Shikamaru…" she began, her voice choked. He said nothing and looked at the floor himself, clearing not enjoying the process of this particular proposition. "Please, don't say anything more."

Sai shot the deer chuunin a sideways glance while Shizune's eyes became sympathetic toward the weeping pink-haired girl. Akira didn't know where to look.

If Sasuke died, internationally-speaking, it would solve a lot of problems. Kumo would have its revenge, Madara would be out of another pawn, and the invasion would fall flat. Konoha could be saved. But Naruto and Sakura and even Kakashi would be devastated, and, most importantly of all, Itachi's sacrifice, his entire  _life_ , would have been for nothing.

At the thought of her children's father, her lavender eyes examined the floor, as well.

Itachi loved Konoha, but Akira knew he would have let the village burn if that meant saving his brother. She didn't need the Uchiha's memories to know Naruto and Sakura felt the same way, and not just that. The way that Akira had loved Itachi—the way she  _still_  loved him—that was how Sakura felt about Sasuke. As much as Akira resented the boy for taking away the man she loved, she would never wish that sort of pain on anyone, let alone Sakura.

"I'm sorry Sakura," Shikamaru said, "but regardless of your answer, I have to do this for the future of Konoha. I'm going to tell Naruto, too. Where is he?"

Of all people, Sai answered him.

"Naruto has gone to the Land of Iron to meet the raikage."

"He's  _what_?"

Akira wanted to scream, knowing there was nothing that she could do to stop them. She wished with every fiber in her being that Tsunade were still awake or that Kakashi were here with her. They would know what to do. They would know so much better than she would.

"Tch." Shikamaru looked annoyed. "This won't be as easy as I thought." Akira resisted the urge to scoff. As smart as he was, he had no idea. Sasuke didn't just have his own power now. He had Itachi's techniques, too, but Akira couldn't even tell them.

"I… will talk to Naruto," Sakura began, trailing off between words, but she stood a little straighter now. All eyes turned to her, including Akira's. "The fool's in love with me, so let me do it. I'm the one who caused him the most pain—I've done nothing but make mistakes, and I don't want to make another one."


	41. Chapter 41

The fight hadn't gone as planned, that was for sure. Juugo lay completely plastered in a wall, semi-conscious and likely only alive thanks to that accursed seal. Suigetsu had been liquefied. His sword was broken and would take both time and blood to repair, and Sasuke—well, he was about to sneak up on the raikage with a lightning-enforced strike of his own.

The massive kage wore some sort of armor, similar to Gaara's sand armor, but made of lightning and more easily penetrable, Sasuke deduced. Still, this was going to be more difficult than he thought with no backup. Perhaps he'd been a bit harsh with Suigetsu and Juugo.

Being the smaller opponent, Sasuke would typically have the advantage of speed, but this was not the case when it came to the raikage. This man was just as fast as he was strong, and, without his sharingan, Sasuke would have been dead long ago.

Undeterred, Sasuke pulsed chakra into his right hand to form the chidori and charged toward the raikage. His fingers glided over the man's armor around his chest area. He didn't break skin, but he'd touched him.

That was certainly a start.

"Using a raiton to increase an attack's power and penetration?" the raikage murmured, almost to himself. "That's Hatake Kakashi's technique!"

_Well, he was my sensei at one point,_  Sasuke mentally retorted. Learning that technique for the chuunin exams all those years ago had been imperative to Sasuke's developing technique, but Sasuke didn't have long to bask in his victory. The next thing he knew, the massive man raised him above his shoulders and everything turned upside down. The raikage strained, arms wrapped tightly around the Sasuke's midsection. The Uchiha's eyes were wide with terror.

"Dammit! Is there really no hope?" Despite his current battle with Darui, Suigetsu noted Sasuke's predicament from the corner of his eye. Even without his weapon, the former Kiri nin had managed to hold his own against the Kumo jounin.

"Nope. Sasuke's as good as dead," the white-haired man said simply, and, although he had to admire the jounin's matter-of-fact way of talking, Suigetsu could not help but wince as Sasuke smashed headfirst into the ground with all the strength the raikage could muster.

The sheer force of the hit sent a shock wave throughout the room, rattling everyone. C was already unconscious, still reeling from the genjutsu Sasuke cast on him earlier.

If Sasuke's hadn't activated Susanoo at the last second, he would be dead. Sasuke groaned. His body ached and although his vision was not impaired, his head spun.

The Uchiha stole a glance at his last conscious teammate, only to find Darui had managed to pin Suigetsu in place on the wall using his much smaller sword and a reoccurring lightning current that kept him from liquefying. The Kumo jounin had then defected to his recovering blonde teammate and now had C's arm slung over his shoulder. The sensor's current state was semi-conscious at best.

Sasuke faintly heard Darui say, "It's over," but Sasuke disagreed. Even with his current compromising position, back bend and legs splayed over his head, he was just getting started.

The raikage, also mistakenly thinking the battle was over, released him and allowed Sasuke's body to fall to the floor, not yet noticing Susanoo's second level beginning to materialize as Sasuke recovered. What he did notice though, was the change in Sasuke's eyes as he activated the his mangekyou.

Tears of blood dripped from his left eye as Sasuke executed his next jutsu.

_Amaterasu!_

He had been aiming for the raikage's heart, but with the man's lightning armor he missed and hit the samurai standing behind him. The man screamed.

_Close enough,_  Sasuke mentally sighed.

"Waah!"

"Put out the flames!" one of his teammates cried.

"They're no ordinary flames! Stay back!" another warned.

And how right they were.

Sasuke felt the raikage's presence appear behind him, and normally he would have been worried. But with Susanno, he wasn't. Just for good measure, he surrounded the jutsu with black flames from Amaterasu.

Normal people would have stopped there, but the raikage was anything but normal.

"Don't underestimate me!" he yelled, and, ignoring the consequences, punched through the black flames, reaching Sasuke's face. In the process, his left arm caught fire.

Not having expected the strike, Sasuke fell to the floor in time to see the raikage further pursuing him, left leg poised to pummel him with a lightning-infused heel kick.

"You're done for!"

And for a moment, Sasuke truly thought he was.

"Guillotine drop!

At the last moment, Sasuke summoned a cushion of black frames to protect himself, and it worked. Somehow, it worked.

Something crunched, like sand.

Sensing new presences, Sasuke turned his head to the side. Then again…

It was sand.

_Gaara!_ It hadn't been Amaterasu. That moody kage had saved his life?

The kazekage stood there in all his glory, his arms crossed. His garments flowed in an unseen wind as tendrils of sand encircled his lean figure.

"Gaara of the Desert," Sasuke said aloud. But there was no time for formal introductions.

"Kamaitachi no jutsu!" Temari joined in the fun with one of her wind jutsus. Which meant…

Sasuke's gaze shifted to the side. Sure enough, Kankuro appeared next, but he didn't attack Sasuke. Instead, he used his puppets to strip the armor off the unfortunate samurai currently burning to death.

"So these are the undying flames of Amaterasu," he mused.

"Stand back, samurai!" Gaara commanded. "This is between ninjas. There's no need for you to lose your lives over this."

Much to Sasuke's surprise, they obeyed.

"S-sorry, kazekage," another samurai said. A group of them were already tending to the one he'd nearly burned to death.

Sasuke heard Suigetsu say, "What the hell is going on?" and for once, the Uchiha fully agreed with him.

Frankly, Sasuke didn't know, either.

"Why have you interfered kazekage?" Despite the black flames still eating the man's arm from punching Sasuke earlier, the raikage sounded displeased over something else. 'If I don't like your answer, I won't let you off easily!"

"If you had continued to attack, the black flames would have harmed you even more," Gaara stated simply, and then added, "Besides, I want to talk to Uchiha Sasuke."

"Hmf." The raikage, in a breathtaking act of self-control, merely frowned as he steadied his hand right above where the black flames consumed his flesh, and, with a chakra-infused hand, chopped off the area, leaving what was disembodied to turn to ash.

"B-boss!" The man's bodyguards had caught up with him by now. Both of them stared in shock at what their leader had just done, but the raikage would have none of it.

"C," he said instead, turning to the blonde, "hurry up and stop the bleeding. I'll attack Sasuke as soon as you're done!"

_Talk about dedicated…_ As bad as the guy's anger issues were, his dedication was equally as impressive.

"Y-yes, sir!" C stuttered.

Sasuke would have continued watching, but he had three other people to fight—people he'd known since he was a child.

"Your eyes…" Gaara began. "Your eyes are still the same."

Somehow, Sasuke remembered. Despite not really caring, he remembered.

_"I can see it in your eyes,"_   _a much younger version of Gaara had said to him, "Just like me, itching to kill those who drove you to this hell called loneliness."_

Gaara wore the same blank expression, but his eyes had changed.

"I've realized that living for revenge doesn't solve anything," the maroon-haired boy continued. "It's not too late for you, Sasuke. Don't escape into your own little world, possessed by hatred. You won't be able to return."

Sasuke smirked, his eyes defiant. "So? If I come back, what is there for me?"

In the least, Kankuro understood. "Gaara, don't bother!" the brother called. "If he could be convinced, Naruto would have not failed. He's a criminal now, a member of Akatsuki. He's not like you!"

"Besides," Temari added, inserting a bit of her own sisterly wisdom, "by attacking the summit, he's guaranteed his position as an internationally-wanted criminal. He has no future."

And how right she was, but Sasuke didn't care. Unfortunately, that didn't stop the kazekage from trying.

"Sasuke, you and I are alike," Gaara repeated. "We have walked through the darkness of the world. That's why we are able to see even a sliver of light. Both back then, and even now."

Sasuke chuckled, though only to himself. "I have long since closed my eyes. My only goal  _is_  the darkness!" he declared.

"Don't make this personal, Gaara!" Kankuro warned. "You're the kazekage!"

Gaara didn't reply at first. He and Sasuke stared at each other, both their expressions blank. Then sand began to emit from that ever-familiar gourd of his. "I know," Gaara finally said, and, with that, a wave of sand shot toward the Uchiha.

Were it not for Susuanoo, it would have hit him, just like all those years ago during the chuunin exams. Black flames spread to life amid the clumps of sand. Gaara raised a non-existent eyebrow.

"Are you done yet, C?" Dark eyes flicked back and forth between Sasuke's battle and the healer-sensor combo currently tending to the man's wounds.

"Almost!"

"Let me help!" Darui stepped in. "I'll go first," he offered, "then the rest of you can attack all at once!"

And with that, the dark-skinned man joined the Sand Siblings formation.

"Okamaitachi!"

"Ranton Laser Circus!"

"Rendan Suna Shigure!"

"Kiki Akahigi Sankaku!" Kankuro had even brought out his Sasori puppet. Hadn't Sakura been responsible for that Akatsuki's death?

With all four attacks focused, Sasuke was forced to bring Susanoo to its second level. By the time the dust cleared, not just the bones, but the muscles of his Itachi-given defender were now visible.

"Gaara," Sasuke began, his lips twisting into a smirk, "My defense is even more absolute than yours." Something Sasuke never thought he would find himself saying.

The samurai and Sand Siblings muttered in confusion among themselves. Only Gaara seemed unaffected.

"Is this the power of the darkness?"

"The second power Susanoo." Blood poured even more freely from Sasuke's left eye. "Only those who control the double mangekyo can use this power."

"Susanoo?" Finally, Gaara seemed to give him a reaction of some sort.

"Is this the mangekyou sharingan?" Temari questioned from the background.

"Uchiha. He's always hiding something," Kankuro muttered.

Then C and the raikage burst in to ruin everything.

"Darui! Sand folks! Retreat!" the blonde screamed as Sunsanoo continued to materialize. Sasuke smiled manically as his creature continued to grow and as the surrounding chakra increased, the room—no, the building began to shake.

"The pillars!" a samurai soldier yelled. "They won't hold much longer!"

And right he was. Rocks began to fall from everywhere—the ceiling, the floor, the walls. Juugo fell from his place in the wall, while Kumo and Suna ninja alike scrambled for safety. Karin screamed, which normally Sasuke would ignore, but the second he spared her a glance she was falling through the air. He caught the redhead in Susanoo's ethereal-looking hand.

It took her a moment to reconfigure everything, including her new location, but she was conscious, and that was all Sasuek cared about.

"Have you located Danzou?" his tone deadpanned.

She looked shaken, but said nothing about it and straightened her glasses. "Yeah," she answered.

"What about Juugo and Suigetsu?" she managed. "Their chakras are still—"

"Leave them," he interrupted. "I have to find Danzou!" Of course, the coward had fled after things went south with the kage's meeting. He waited for a reply, but she just looked at him. Sasuke grew impatient. "Hurry up and lead me to him!"

"A-all right," she stuttered. She looked terrified. He didn't care.

Karin led him back to the room where the kages had first met up. Most everyone was still there. But where was Danzou?

Sasuke hung upside down from the ceiling, observing, but his cover was short lived.

"They're here!" The mizukage's bodyguard spoke—the one with the implanted byakugan.

"Up above!" Danzou's bodyguard spoke next. Sasuke's eyes fixed on the man as the rest of the room clambered to react.

The first to attack him was, of all people, the Iron Daimyo with his samurai sword. Sasuke activated his regular sharingan and blocked the attack with his lightning blade.

"Not bad," the man said. His eyes were narrowed, and Sasuke felt fully prepared to fight him until Karin burst into the room.

"Sasuke! Danzou's getting away!" And that was all he needed to disappear.

The Uchiha dropped to the ground, landing on his feet next to a conveniently-placed hole in the wall the raikage had created earlier in pursuit of him.

"Karin, follow me!" he commanded. She squeaked in fear of what was to come, but did as he asked.

They were close, so close to being gone, being able to pursue Danzou, but something stopped them. Karin didn't see it, but Sasuke did and stopped short in his tracks to avoid being spit on with what turned out to be acid, considering it burned a hole in the wall they intended to go through.

Sasuke, mildly annoyed, turned to their assailant, the mizukage. A tall, voluptuous-looking woman with a figure like Tsunade and long, wild chestnut hair that reached well past her waist.

"Akatsuki…" she began, touching a hand to her lips to wipe away any residual acid, "violated Kirigakure and made yondaime mizukage their plaything." She still sat in her original chair from the meeting. Her bodyguards, including the man with the byakugan and a shorter boy with blue spiked hair and square glasses who looked oddly optimistic considering the situation. Then, she completely changed the subject.

"Looks like the Uchiha clan has some good looking men." She sighed. "Such a good-looking man. What a waste."

"Don't interfere." Sasuke's eyes transformed into Amaterasu's stars. It was hell on his pain tolerance and his vision, but he had to do it. For revenge.

The mizukage paid him no heed and proceeded to strike a more seductive pose as she touched a hand to her cheek. "But," she continued, "I'll give you a kiss to remember me by."

Karin reacted before he did.

"Who the hell do you think you are?!" she screeched, clenching her fist and pointing with her other hand. "An old hag like you has no right to be acting all seductive!"

The muzikage only smiled more widely, her gaze on Sasuke.

Her one bodyguard, the blue-haired swordsman with pointy teeth and glasses, glanced back and forth between the two of them and his kage. Also present was the much shorter tsuchikage and his massive bodyguard who looked like he belonged in the Akimichi clan.

The chestnut-haired woman began executing hand signs for a new jutsu. Her cheeks puffed out. Just what was she about to spit at him? More acid?

Sure enough, the female kage spat acid, and far more than last time, toward him and Karin.

"Yoton! Yokai no jutsu!"

"Not again!" Even Karin recognized the acid. She jumped. Sasuke didn't. While Karin took shelter, Susanoo protected himself with Susanoo, leaving him unscathed.

The tsuchikage and his bodyguard had moved to the ceiling, both having jumped there to avoid the mizukage's attack. Meanwhile, the mizukage and her skittish-looking guard jumped after him, and, unsurprisingly, ignored Karin.

"Choujiro!" she called.

"R-right!" the swordsman stuttered. While Sasuke settled into a defensive stance, the one apparently named Choujiro unwrapped the weapon—no, weapons—clutched in his hand.

"Hiramekarei release!" The boy's double blades lit up as a massive ball of white hot chakra-fueled energy shot itself toward Sasuke.

Physically, the blast didn't injure him, but the force of it knocked him back.

"Ugh…" Now on his hands and knees, Sasuke groaned.

_All the cells in my body ache,_  Sasuke thought, wincing as he attempted to stand.  _So this is what happens if I use it for long periods of time._   _I haven't even perfected it yet, and I'm in this much pain!_ Training with Madara had certainly helped, but…  _What must it have been like for Itachi?_

Still trying to deal with the pain, Sasuke remained on his knees.

Something sizzled. The Uchiha glanced upward to see the mizukage. Neither of her guards were with her.

"Now that we're alone," she began, "Look behind you." And he did. There was a wall. "I blocked that wall the first time I attacked." She smiled, a triumphant glint in her green eyes. "The room is completely sealed. There's no way out." Her hands came together to form additional seals.

"I can use water, fire, and earth, and I have two kekki genkais." She stopped on the hand sign for horse, took a deep breath, and spat something again, but it wasn't liquid.

It was gas. The walls around him began to melt.

"It's melting," Sasuke murmured. The ribs of Susanoo kept him safe, but he and Madara had never tested his defense against deadly gasses. Panting, Sasuke brought his hand up, ready to fight, but the strain from Susanoo's continue used took its toll.

The young Uchiha felt a burning in his lungs and began spitting up blood, panting in between coughs.

"Looks like the fight with the raikage really wore you out," she remarked. Unable to speak, Sasuke didn't reply as streaks of blood slid down the sides of his mouth. "Unfortunately for you, I have no intention to help you." She pointed at him with nail-painted fingers. "It always hurts my heart to melt a good-looking guy, but you're going to have to die."

The gas filled the room, and, even with Susanoo, Sasuke felt something on his arm begin to burn. He looked down to see splotchy red welts on his left hand and forearm.

_It must be an acid mist._  Made sense, considering where she was from. But, before Sasuke could consider panicking, something else happened.

A new presence joined the fight, but it wasn't a kage.

A scream sounded from the other side of the wall that sounded like Choujiro and another person, likely the tsuchikage. In the least, it distracted the mizukage, even if only for a moment. Before she could react, a bubbling white goo began to ooze from the walls, answering his question, and that ooze had a face.

_It's him_ … Sasuke couldn't help but smile, ever so slightly.

Zetsu.

The mizukage spat acid on him, too, but it did little to deter his plant-like ally. The creature made his way toward Sasuke. He instinctively recoiled as the goo hit him, but it didn't hurt. If anything, Sasuke felt… better?

_My chakras are being replenished!_  he realized.

It gave him the strength to burst through the same wall the mizukage sealed, saving his life and allowing him back in the fight. All eyes turned to the Uchiha as he emerged, panting, but ready to continue.

"Sasuke! Are you okay?!" he recognized Karin's voice.

This was perfect. The acid mist from the mizukage leaked from the hole he'd made. If he was dying, he'd be taking these bastards with him

"Looks like she's having a little trouble." The tsuchikage spoke next. Neither he nor his bodyguard were hanging from the ceiling anymore. "Akatsuchi," he turned to the massive man, "Shall we join the fight?"

"Yeah!"

And now Sasuke had two new opponents.

The tsuchikage formed a hand sign, muttered the name of his jutsu, and the room shook. Karin screamed for what felt like the millionth time, and, as if he were made of air, the tsuchikage floated to the ground with a technique Sasuke didn't know.

"I can't believe a kid like you killed Deidara," the old man said. Something cube-shaped materialized between his hands.

Sasuke clutched his eye as a shooting pain pulsed through his retina. Even with the energy reboot from Zetsu, he was nowhere near his original speed, and the eye pain certainly wasn't helping. Before he could react further, the energy cube the size of a matchbox grew to the size of a small building, and the last thing Sasuke remembered was hearing, "Jinton Genkai Hikaru no jutsu!"

A flash of yellow energy filled the room. Karin screamed his name, but Sasuke wasn't conscious to hear it. Kages and bodyguards murmured alike in confusion. Karin sat there, eyes wide in shock.

"No, it can't be..." She sat in the same place she'd fallen from before, eyes wide. "Sasuke's chakras… they're gone!"

"Of course they're gone!" the tsuchikage declared, his repulsive face coming into view. "His body was smashed to smithereens. And you're next!"

Karin recoiled, and the kages gathered, each with their own questions, save for Danzou, who remained nowhere to be found.

"Where's Sasuke?" the raikage demanded.

"I smashed him to bits," the tsuchikage said proudly, but his words were short-lived. The White Zetsus previously terrorizing them suddenly stopped and instead rushed toward the middle of the room where an odd spiral formed. At first, only Choujiro noticed. The rest of the kages were too busy arguing.

"What?!" the raikage bellowed, towering his full height over the tsuchikage. "That was my job! How  _dare_ you!"

And then the spiral spoke.

"You still have a chance." And all eyes turned. "So quit your whining, raikage!"

The spiral materialized to reveal a familiar orange mask, spiky dark hair, and a black and red uniform. With the speaker, an unconscious Uchiha Sasuke lay slumped over his shoulder.

"What?!" The raikage's emotions were a mix between incredulous and furious. On the other hand, Karin's expression brightened.

"Hello," the only conscious Uchiha greeted. "I'm here to tell you all about my goal, the Mooneye Plan."

-

Tobi surveyed the tiny crowd beneath him through the single eyehole of his mask.

Honestly, he was disappointed. He'd been hoping that Sasuke would be capable of inflicting more damage than this. Regardless, he arrived in time to save the boy.

While the kages gawked, Tobi used his space time jutsu to transporting Sasuke somewhere safe: a dimension of his choosing. As the last of the unconscious boy disappeared into the spirals, Tobi heard Karin call out for the young Uchiha yet again before the raikage's aggressive tone interrupted.

"I have no interest in hearing the twisted plans of Akatsuki!" Despite the man's disembodied forearm, he seemed in good health. "I cannot understand you people!"

But he would. He would very soon.

"Hand over Sasuke!" the raikage demanded.

With Sasuke's teleportation completed, Karin was next, but first he turned to the massive dark-skinned man.

"First, you listen to my explanation," Tobi said. "I may comply, depending on your answer."

"Let's me calm about this," the tsuchikage spoke up, and Tobi found himself mentally thanking whatever powers that be for the old man's wisdom as opposed to the raikage's youthful ignorance. "Let's hear what he has to say and make our decisions then."

"Tch." The raikage was clearly displeased, but he obeyed.

Next, Tobi appeared behind Karin, surprising the girl. He transported her to the same dimension. Despite not feeling any pain, she screamed, but he did suppose anyone being teleported against their will would be understandably surprised.

"Heal Sasuke for me." Were his only instructions.

"That must be Madara's ability," the Uchiha heard Kankuro murmur.

"Looks like time-space ninjutsu," Temari concurred.

"Now then," Tobi jumped back to his original place, standing in plain sight of all the kages. "It looks like you're all ready to listen, ladies and gentlemen!"

"Why is it that you seek to win Sasuke over?" Gaara inquired.

Go figure, the first intelligent question came from the youngest of them all. So Tobi answered.

"A sharingan that can activate Susanoo is a rarity. I wouldn't want to let a nice pair of eyes like that slip through my fingers." He paused. "In fact, I wanted to give him the opportunity to train them up further in combat with the five kages." The ultimate test. "It was I who sent him here." That, and to demolish a few potential enemies. Both would have been good.

He allowed them a second to react before continuing.

"I would have liked him to weaken you to the point where I could have taken you hostage, but it looks like that was too much to expect."

"Hostage?" the mizukage scoffed, arms folded across her massive chest. She looked offended.

"Just to ensure that the Mooneye Operation plays out smoothly."

"It certainly is a shock to hear that Uchiha Madara is still alive," the tsuchikage remarked. "But why would a man of your caliber resort to these roundabout tactics? Surely with your power, you could accomplish anything you want."

The Uchiha uncrossed his arm and meandered about, looking relaxed. "The wounds from my battle with the first, Hashirama, were too deep." He could remember the old man's words as clearly as the day he'd spoken them. "Right now, I am powerless. I am nothing more than an empty shell of my former self."

"So this 'operation' is for the purpose of returning you to your former self?" C translated.

"Well, that is one way of putting it," Tobi admitted, "but that is not all that entails."

"What are you plotting?" the Iron Daimyo demanded. "What exactly is this 'Mooneye Operation'?"

"I would like to take my time with this tale," Tobi replied. "If you don't mind, I'll just take a seat." His nonchalant demeanor only served to aggravate everyone all the more as he situated himself on the edge of one of the few still-intact balconies overlooking the kages.

"We're asking you what this plan of yours is!" Kankuro snapped.

Tobi cackled, and everyone went silent.

"My plan is to have everything become one with me." His words received several questioning looks. "I mean to achieve a 'complete form' in which all is united."

"One with you?" the tsuchikage was the first to question. "All united?"

Tobi's eye narrowed in amusement.

"There is a stone monument passed down among the Uchiha for generations," he began. From there, he continued with his usual introductory history lesson, which included the sharignan's importance in reading the ancient documents left by the legendary Rikudou Sennin.

"The Rikudou Sennin?" the tsuchikage echoed. "Now this is starting to get ridiculous."

The raikage, on the other hand, remained hotheaded and brash.

"Enough of this dawdling!" he bellowed. "What has the Rikudou Sennin got to do with this plan of yours?!"

So he told them. The monster that this legendary sage had saved the world from, and the resulting biju born from it—the nine fragments that composed the Juubi.

Temari was the first to disagree with him. It was understandable, considering Gaara was a previous host to one of those fragments.

"As I said," Tobi repeated, "it is the fused form of all the biju."

And from there, he explained how it all involved him, using the Juubi's massive chakra as a power source.

"Using the moon, I will cast a genjutsu upon all humans living upon this earth's surface, controlling all of humanity within that genjutsu. I will become one with the world!"

No one else would need to die. No more tragedies like Rin.

"It will be a world without hatred or conflict. Everything will be one with me, everything united—that is my Mooneye Operation."

"To hell with that!" the raikage yelled. "I won't give the world to the likes of you!"

He'd expected some negative feedback, but he hoped the other kages would be more receptive.

Then Gaara spoke.

"A peace born of illusion is nothing but a lie," he said calmly. "Peace only holds meaning if it is created in reality."

Next, the mizukage.

"What do you expect us to find in such a world?" she questioned. "It would be devoid of hope, devoid of dreams! Nothing more than running from reality!"

And finally, the tsuchikage.

"So you mean to unite the world. That sounds similar to what Danzou was saying earlier. But it sounds to me rather than 'uniting' the world, both of you want simply to take it for yourselves."

Tobi did not enjoy being compared to Danzou, but he could understand the man's thought process. They would be convinced. It would just take a bit more time.

"The concept of hope is nothing more than giving up. A word that hold no true meaning."

They would see. They would all see.

"There is no such thing as hope!" He was yelling now, and he intended to keep it up. "Now hand over the remaining Hachibi and Kyuubi, and cooperate with me! Otherwise, war will be upon us."

"War?" This time, Gaara echoed. A concept Tobi knew the young leader did not fully grasp, even with all his wisdom.

The raikage gave him an incredulous look. "The Hachibi?" He focused on a completely different detail. "What is the meaning of this?! You already took—"

"We failed in the recovery of the Hachibi," Tobi interrupted. "He escaped from our grasp. He has achieved true perfection as a jinchuriki and a shinobi, as might be expected of your own brother."

"Ahhh, I knew it!" Darui breathed a sigh of relief. "I had a feeling it would be something like this." Next to him, C sighed with relief, too.

The raikage, on the other hand, had a much different reaction.

"That ungrateful little shit! He used this whole damned affair to run away from the village and have fun somewhere on his own? UNFORGIVABLE!" His only remaining fist clenched. "Oh, he'll taste my iron claw!"

Ever the calm one, Gaara spoke up, "I will not hand Uzumaki Naruto to you."

"I concur!" the mizukage added.

"What do you say, raikage?" the tsuchikage inquired, clearly agreeing with the previous two.

"I will not hand my brother to this man!"

Obito mentally sighed. Of course, these fools would fail to see his logic.

"I may have no power myself, but I have the power of the biju I have collected so far." He allowed them a moment for the information to sink in. "You have no hope of victory."

"We will not abandon hope," Gaara said firmly, and the rest of the kages nodded in their respective forms of agreement.

_Hope._ There they went with using that word again.

"Very well then." The Uchiha rested left elbow on his opposite knee as he overlooked the array of powerful people below him. "In that case, I hereby declare the Fourth Ninja War."

"The Fourth Ninja War?" Kankuro echoed.

"Are you serious?" the tsuchikage snapped.

For once, the raikage fell silent and now merely glared.

"I'm not fool enough to say a thing like this in jest," he assured ominously. His single sharingan began to spin, and the portal for his jutsu opened. "Next time we meet, it will be on the battle ground."

He disappeared into the spirals, leaving the kages to fight among themselves.


	42. Chapter 42

Akira didn't know what to make of the situation. Just when she'd thought things couldn't possibly get any worse.

Sakura and her team—they were gonna kill Sasuke. Or at least they were going to try and possibly die in the process. They were on their way to the Land of Iron to find Naruto and inform him, and there was nothing she could do.

Nothing at all.

Kakashi was there with them. He knew, at least, about her, about Sasuke. About Itachi… But she was stuck here in the hokage's private tent with an unconscious hokage and Shizune, who looked just as shaken up as she did. Neither of them said anything at first. Sakura and Sai's chakra presences were long gone from the village. Apparently they'd taken Lee and Kiba with them, too.

Akira hated this. She  _hated_  feeling useless.

-

Kisame formed a hand sign, concentrating briefly as he tracked the Hachibi's chakra.

This was just great. Sasuke had, big shocker, completely fucked up and left him to clean up the mess.

Kisame had admit he especially missed Itachi during times like these. His former partner's calm, collected demeanor had always served to soothe his more violent one. In the least, he would be able to display his full power without being lectured for it later.

Right now, Kisame was in a forest of sorts headed towards a clearing, where he sensed the eight tails' chakra in addition to one other presence. The Hachibi had come here not so much in an attempt to hide, but in the desire for a break, likely from the responsibilities that came with being a jinchurki. Frankly, it made sense. Kisame had never personally met the raikage, but he'd heard enough stories.

_"Once I declare war on them,"_ he remembered Madara saying to him,  _"they'll keep the eight tails on a tight leash. Once they do, you'll have to hunt him slowly and carefully."_

_"This is where it gets tricky,"_ he had been told.  _"Use White Zetsu to sneak in. He can make perfect duplicates of anyone he's ever touched, right down to their chakra. It will be too weak for battle, so use it as a diversion instead."_

Kisame still doubted, as he'd said back then, that he'd be able to resist beating the Hachibi half to death, but he'd try.

He'd been tracking the Hachibi for quite some time and even had a visual by now. Not caring if the eight tails noticed him, Kisame continued walking forward. The other presence he felt was likely a fan of sorts. He certainly didn't look like a bodyguard. The heavy set adult male possessed an impressive display of poofy black hair tied up in an odd-looking ponytail.

It didn't take long for the Hachibi, an impressively muscular black man with cornrowed bleach blonde hair and bull horn tattoo on his left cheek, to notice them.

"Who exactly are you?" the odd-looking sidekick asked, his eyes immediately drawn to the massive weapon on Kisame's back.

Ignoring him, Kisame turned to the host.

"If wasn't easy finding you, Hachibi," he said, "but you see, my blade Samehada just  _loves_  powerful chakra, and it was rather persistent in tracking down your very tasty scent."

Samehada would get her chakra fix and Kisame would get his daily dose of violence. All in all, this was a win-win situation. With that, his neutral expression deviated into a wicked smile.

"I'm afraid you're going to have to become food for Samehada," he informed. "Don't worry though. We won't kill you."

_Yet._  Kisame devilish grin only grew. He would have to be patient, but it would happen.

-

Kakashi didn't know what to make of the situation. He couldn't remember ever having to deal with so many odd events in such a short time span, even during his ANBU days.

First, there was the invasion, dying, and getting resurrected. That had certainly thrown him for a loop. Then there was Akira, her story, and Sasuke's connection to the whole ordeal. Then Madara showed and blew up a good portion of the inn, which resulted in them getting chewed out by the owner and having to pay for the damages out of pocket.

Kakashi would not have believed Madara's tale if only hearing the story for the first time. But, he had to admit, it lined up eerily well with what Akira had told him, and she even had the deceased Uchiha's ring with her. His former ANBU captain would not have allowed just anyone to have that, even in death.

So there was that, dying, the invasion, and now this…

Sakura.

Her words stunned all of them, including Yamato, who stared at the pink-haired kunoichi with a slack jaw and wide eyes. Kiba was not amused, and Lee looked just as surprised as Yamato. Sai had even raised an eyebrow.

Kakashi just stood there, his mask-obscured lips in a straight line and his eyes fixed in their usual lazy expression.

"I love you, Naruto," she had said.

The copy ninja had thought it odd enough to feel her chakra in the Land of Iron. He knew she wouldn't have come all the way out here and dragged three other people with her if it hadn't been important.

And this, certainly wasn't.

"What… what did you just say now, Sakura-chan?" Naruto fumbled his words, cerulean eyes wide. "I dunno if I heard you wrong. Can you say it again?"

"What I said, Naruto," Sakura began, her eyes darting shyly, almost seductively, to the snowy ground, "is that I love you." And she didn't stop there. "I'm saying there's nothing between Sasuke and me anymore! I don't know what I was thinking liking a person like that!" she insisted, shaking her head for emphasis. "I'm confessing my feelings here, so listen up!"

Any other day, Naruto would have been ecstatic. It was fairly obvious to all how in love he'd been with the pink-haired girl all these years. But not today. Definitely not today.

"But how?  _Why?_ " Naruto blubbered. "If this is a joke, Sakura-chan, it isn't funny…" he trailed off. “What happened?"

"I just suddenly realized there's no sense in liking someone who's a fugitive and a criminal!" her tone was sweet, sickly sweet. That kind she used when she was trying to cover something up. "I can't stay a kid forever. I have to face reality."

This was reality? Kakashi couldn't quite put his finger on it, but there was something else at play here. Something sinister.

"So, Naruto," she continued, forcing her eyes closed and her mouth into a fake smile, "no need to keep that promise. Won't you stop chasing Sasuke?"

"What the hell are you—" Yamato began, but Kakashi held out an arm to stop him, simultaneously shooting the man a one-eyed warning glare.

There was more to this story. There had to be.

"Did something happen to you, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked again. "Why me, of all people? All the sudden…"

"Nothing happen!" she assured, but there was that fake smile again. "If you want to know why I started liking you, I'll say it clearly."

To prove her point, she stepped forward and embraced the blonde, but he didn't hug her back. His arms were raised, like he intended to, but they never made contact. They just hovered there, frozen. Confused.

"Sasuke-kun just keeps getting further away from me," she said, "But, Naruto, you've always stayed by my side. You've encouraged me."

Even if her reasons were logical, Kakashi didn't buy it, and, by the looks of it, neither did Naruto.

"I finally realized who you really are, Naruto." She averted her gaze once again, jade eyes flickering to the ground. "You're the hero who protected the village beloved by everyone who lives in it. The mischievous little dummy I know, little by little, is becoming this great and important man, and I’ve been watching from right next to him."

She still had her arms around him, but Naruto hadn't moved.

"You're right here where I can touch you like this," she said, eyes closed now as she attempted what looked like nuzzling. "You make me feel safe. Right now, from the bottom of my heart, I—"

Naruto's hand finally sprang into action, but, rather than embracing her, he roughly grabbed the kunoichi by the shoulders.

"Gimme a break, Sakura!" His eyebrows furrowed and his mouth was set in a pensive straight line. "I told you, that joke's not funny!"

He was trying to be sincere; he really was. Sakura gazed at him with an expression that typically made him melt, but this time, for the first time, it didn't work.

"Have you flipped?" she attempted a laugh. "I just switched from Sasuke to you. They say a woman's heart is as fickle as the autumn sky, don't they?"

The jinchurki gripped her shoulders just a bit tighter.

"I have people who lie to themselves!" Naruto was past the point of uncomfortable. Now he was furious. The air filled with tension. All things considered, Sakura remained surprisingly calm.

"Why do you say I'm lying to myself?" she inquired. Her eyebrows furrowed. "I'm the only one who know what I'm thinking! If you don't like me, then just say so! If you're just going to make up excuses—"

"It's just weird!" Naruto cut in, throwing out a hand for emphasis. "You came all this way just to tell me something like  _that?_ "

"Something like  _that_?" Sakura expression contorted into a glare. "All this way? Something like that? You think it's easy for a girl to confess her feelings?!" Her tone grew louder and now she was yelling. "Of course I'd come all this way! You've been chasing after Sasuke and putting yourself in danger! Akatsuki is after you because you're the Kyuubi's host! You should be worried for your own safety!"

She faltered, but only briefly.

"I don't want you to go after Sasuke if it means putting yourself in danger like that! I've come here because I want you to come back to the village with me! That's all!"

Blue eyes glared into jade green, both fruitlessly trying to read each other.

"That just sounds like an excuse to me," Naruto retorted. "I think I know you better than that."

"You don't know anything! I don't care about Sasuke anymore now that he's a criminal!" Sakura insisted, waving her right hand for emphasis. "So forget about your promise to me!"

Was that what this was all about? Naruto's promise to bring back Sasuke?

_There has to be more to this,_  Kakashi mused.

"This isn't about that promise." Naruto's expression went from passionate and enraged to submissive and dark. Contemplative even. His eyes shifted. "I don't know why Sasuke is so obsessed with revenge." The blonde looked up again, at Sakura, then Kiba, Lee, and Sai. "He loved his family and his clan. I think it's because he loved them so much that he can't let it go."

"Then why did Sasuke join Akatsuki after he defeated Itachi?" Kiba argued, and had Kakashi not known any better, he'd think the Inuzuka had a point.

"That's not what happened," Naruto began. "The truth is—"

"Naruto!" At long last, Kakashi stepped in. His tone of voice alone was enough for Naruto to know he had no business sharing that sort of information at this present time.

_"This is top secret," Kakashi had told him. "Let's just keep what Madara said between us. I don't want to cause trouble during the reconstruction of the village. Besides," he added, "we can't trust what he said about the Konoha elders using Itachi to destroy the Uchiha clan with nothing to back it up."_

But Kakashi did have something to back it up. He had Akira’s testimony. Kakashi's hadn't told Yamato or even Naruto yet. Still trying to process the information, he'd waited, then Madara showed up to reveal the truth anyway. And now there was Sakura... Enough had been lost already. Kakshi didn't need to single-handedly destroy Akira's anonymity as well by revealing her connection to Itachi.

But, for the time being, they had to deal with the situation at hand.

"My promise doesn't have anything to do with you!" Naruto retorted. His eyes turned serious again. "I want to help Sasuke."

Sakura's lips pursed, but she said nothing. Sai stared blankly ahead, then Kiba stepped forward to whisper something to the pink-haired kunoichi. Thanks to his extensive training, Kakashi caught it.

_"What do you want to do, Sakura?"_ the Inuzuka questioned.  _"Should we tell him the truth?"_

Naruto hadn't heard it, and, at the moment, that wasn't such a bad thing. The only discrepancy was the "truth" bit. Which "truth" were they talking about?

Whatever it was, it was enough for Sakura to turn on her heel to leave.

"Fine! I'm going home!" she announced. Akamaru barked in the background. Naruto kept staring straight ahead at her and her makeshift team.

"Let's go, Kiba, Lee, Sai!"

Lee mouthed the first syllable of her name in some sort of protest, but Sakura ignored him and kept walking. Exchanging looks, the three boys capitulated and followed after her, Akamaru trailing behind. The four of them disappeared into the distance in a blur of matching kakki cloaks.

Naruto didn't move immediately. Like Kakashi and Yamato, he was trying to process what exactly had just happened and, most of all, why.

Kakashi allowed Naruto a moment to let it all sink in. Approximately five minutes passed before Naruto moved even an inch. But, after some gentle coaxing, the three of them were just about to make their way back inside their new hotel when Kakashi, feeling another presence, turned his head to see a pale dark-haired figure walking toward them.

_Sai?_ It couldn't be.

"Why did you—"

"It appears to be a bunshin," Kakashi informed, cutting him off. Naruto drew back, but then the clone, still dressed in its striped kakki cloak, spoke.

"When Sakura confessed to you," the clone began, "I will now tell you what she could not."

"You're kidding me," Naruto said incredulously.

"I figured something was up." Kakashi shook his head. In the least, now they would get a clear explanation. Obviously, it somehow involved Sasuke. Why else would Sakura act the way she had?

"Sakura didn't come all the way out here to confess her love," Sai's clone stated. "She was supposed to tell you the collective decision made by your former academy classmates.

"I  _knew_ something didn't feel right," Naruto mused. "So she was hiding something."

"With everything I've learned, I can understand why she acted the way she did."

"Sai, tell me," Naruto said, his expression serious.

Yamato looked serious, as well. Kakashi said nothing.

"The Leaf is going to dispose of Sasuke itself," Sai revealed. "Your ex-classmates are preparing to act as we speak.

Naruto's eyes widened. Kakashi wasn't surprised. Much like he had with Sakura, Naruto seized the clone's shoulders.

"And Sakura-chan's okay with it, too?!"

The clone's expression remained blank and he didn't answer.

"But Sakura-chan loves Sasuke! She wouldn't just—"

"Sasuke is only helping spread his darkness across the world," Sai stated. "Letting him live would only sow the seeds of another war. He's just another criminal now. Sasuke lost the hope of returning when his group Akatsuki attacked our village. Your fellow leaf shinobi would never accept him now."

Sai's expression darkened. His eyebrow furrowed and Naruto's hands came off him.

"Sakura's not stupid, either," the artist continued. "She understands the position he's put us all in. That's why she came all the way out here. To tell you herself."

Kakashi mentally sighed. That certainly explained things.

"Th-then why didn't she tell me the truth?" Naruto stuttered.

"It's not an easy thing to say," Kakashi stepped in, "especially since she knew how much it would hurt you."

"But still…" Naruto muttered.

"Giving up on Sasuke and choosing you was Sakura's way of freeing you from your promise," Sai explained. "She simply couldn't bring herself to tell you the truth when you refused to stop trying to save him."

Naruto's expression only became more troubled.

"She was only thinking of you, and I think you understood that."

Naruto didn't reply.

"Actually," Sai continued, "Sakura forbade any of us from telling you the truth. She told us that she wanted to tell you in person, that it was her duty."

"She must have known how Naruto would react," Yamato spoke up for the first time that encounter. "She never intended to tell him the truth at all, did she?" His gaze met Sai's. "What's she going to do now?"

"I honestly have no idea," the clone admitted, "but if I had to guess, I'd say Sakura…" he trailed off. Everyone waited. Then, he resumed. "I'd say she plans to kill him herself."

Naruto's expression tensed even more, somehow.

"Does she, Sai?" Yamato demanded.

"Probably, yes," he confirmed. "Sakura smiled at me and said she'd work with everyone, but this time, I knew it was a façade."

"No way…" Naruto stared at the ground, eyes wide as he processed the information. "Sakura-chan would never… she loves Sasuke so much—"

"It's  _because_ she loves him," Sai pointed out, "that she doesn't want him to sink any lower. She wants to rescue him from the evil path he walks now, even if the only way to do that is to kill him with her own two hands. Personally, I believe she's prepared to do it."

"Which also means," Sai continued, "she's willing to let you hate her forever, Naruto. I think it's her way of atoning for saddling you with the burden of that promise for so many years. She's asked too much of you, and now she's trying to end all this herself."

_Why must everyone feel the need to do things on their own without talking about it first?_ Kakashi silently lamented. Sasuke had gone off on his own trying to avenge his family by himself. Naruto always tried to shoulder everyone's pain and his own, and now this—it was a common mistake that ninja made, forgetting that they had teammates for a reason. Kakashi had certainly made that mistake before, multiple times. But now this…?

"Why are  _you_  telling me all this, Sai?" Naruto questioned.

The pale boy looked away, his usual peppy expression faltering, as if he felt guilty about something.

"I feel like I may have helped push Sakura into her current state of mind," he admitted. "So I wanted to let you know. I knew I couldn't just let her go alone. Like I said, I'm part of Team Seven, too."

It was his attempt at being considerate and looking out for the others. The boy had emotionally matured, even if he still had a long way to go.

"Uh-huh." Naruto didn't sound convinced.

_Naruto's mind must be reeling from all this,_  Kakashi thought, sparing a glance at the confused blonde.  _What am I gonna do?_

And just when Kakashi had thought things couldn't possibly get more interesting, they did.

"Naruto!" All heads turned as a new voice joined them along with two other people. Even Kakashi confessed that, with everything going on, he hadn't felt them coming.

It was the Sand Siblings: Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari.

"We came to bring you guys up to speed, so listen carefully," Temari began, "because  _a lot_  went down at the kage summit."

What could it possibly be now?

Temari and Kankuro told most of the story. Gaara interjected every so often with a grunt or nod of his own, but, one way or another, all was explained.

"Wow, talk about a long meeting," Yamato remarked once they finished, his arms crossed. "I knew Danzou couldn't be trusted."

"I've never been enthused with the idea of becoming hokage," Kakashi admitted, "but even in this situation, I can't do anything until we get back to the Leaf and consider everyone else's opinions."

"Madara declared war on the whole world!" Temari exclaimed. "There’s no time for politics!"

"I have a feeling everyone will agree right away," Yamato added. "We can continue the discussion once Kakashi-senpai is hokage."

_Hokage, huh?_ The title applying to him sounded surreal, but not in a happy sort of way. More of a "great, now I have a shit ton more responsibilities to accomplish" sort of way.

"They know that if they wait, Madara and Akatsuki will make the first move, and we'll be stuck reacting to them," Yamato predicted, now speaking to Gaara.

"Very true," Kakashi agreed, then turned back to Naruto, who had remained abnormally silent this entire time.

"Then there's Sasuke," Yamato said, his expression weary. "I can't believe he attacked the kage summit."

But Kakashi could. Sadly, it made perfect sense, especially with Madara's manipulation.

"Naruto," Gaara began, drawing everyone's attention, "Just so we're clear, this is a war to protect the eight and nine-tails. In other words, a war to protect  _you,_ and, in doing so, the whole shinobi world. I, as the kazekage, am putting my life on the line for you."

Naruto looked at the ground again, clearly not comfortable with being in such an important position.

"And if Sasuke, a member of Akatsuki, stands against me,” Gaara continued, “I'll show no mercy." All eyes turned to Naruto, awaiting his response. He said nothing.

"Sasuke has stopped looking for you," Gaara further informed. "He seeks the darkness of his own free will." At this, the kazekage finally got a reaction, and Naruto’s expression turned to one of alarm.

"Naruto, you once said to me, 'I'm the future hokage.' Well, I became the kazekage." And then he did something even more unexpected and put his hand on the boy's shoulder, attempting to comfort him. "If you're truly prepared to take up the mantle of kage, then as Sasuke's friend, you know what you have to do."

Naruto said nothing. Gaara waited, attempting to at least make eye contact with the blonde, but when that didn't work either, Temari stepped in.

"Let's go home, Gaara," she said. “We relayed the message. The job's done."

The kage capitulated and removed his arm from his unusually silent friend's shoulder.

"We'll return to our village," Temari stated, and turned to the silver-haired copy nin. "The Sand will act as if you were hokage, Hatake Kakashi," she announced. "As the Leaf's ally, we'll ask you to ensure there's no confusion about what's happening."

"Roger that."

"I consider you a friend." Although Gaara's back was turned, everyone knew he spoke to Naruto. "As a child, 'friend' was simply a word to me. Nothing more, nothing less. But, after I met you, that word's meaning was what counted." The maroon-haired kage rotated his head to look at Naruto over his shoulder as he uttered his parting words. "Think carefully about what that word means, and what you can really do for Sasuke." He turned back to his siblings. "Move out!"

And with that, they were gone just as quickly as they'd come.

Naruto remained silent. Beside Kakashi, Yamato moved, likely in his own attempt to comfort the boy, but, just like before, Kakashi held out an arm and stopped him.

"He needs to come up with his own answer," Kakashi told the man, and, although he didn't enjoy watching, he knew it was true.

-

A kunai imbedded itself before Danzou in the stone bridge they walked on, causing the man to draw back. His bodyguards Torune and Fuu to jump into defensive stances. Tobi found their pointless actions amusing as he made himself known from a decorated pillar above them.

"It's been quite some time, Danzou," the Uchiha called. Although they couldn't physically see him smirk, the tone of his voice definitely showed it. "I haven't seen you since the Uchiha Massacre."

Something exploded. Danzou remained static where he stood, but the Aburame looked shaken, making the chestnut-haired Yamanaka the most likely source of the noise. So, while Tobi sprang into a defensive stance, Danzou did exactly as planned and removed the bandages concealing his right arm, which revealed an odd mechanical contraption and beneath that sharingan eyes from more relatives than Tobi cared to count.

"Fu, Torune," Danzou said, "back me up. I'm releasing my right arm." He pressed a few buttons on the forearm contraption, causing knobs and pins to whirl and spin.

"So you're ready to go, eh, Danzou?" Tobi taunted, challenge evident in his tone.

"There's no telling what Madara's capable of," the man continued, paying no attention to the Uchiha's attempt at banter. "Be cautious."

"Sir!" the Yamanaka confirmed.

Now to take out the guards. This, at least, should be fun.

They were qualified, to say in the least. They had critical thinking and comprehensive analysis skills, but not enough to counter his teleportation and strategy techniques. The Aburame’s nano-scale poison bugs were certainly a challenge, but Tobi managed to use those things against them. The poison negatively affected his right arm after he teleported the Aburame away first, but, after that, he still managed to teleport the Yamanaka away, as well.

Now Danzou was alone. Perfect.

In a split second, Tobi disappeared again, leaving the elder to rot in confusion. He reappeared in the alternate dimension where he'd sent Sasuke and Karin. The area was an empty space, void of any sky or living creatures. The only objects in the dimension were the various building-sized cubes and rectangular surfaces that mimicked the rooftops, only without any actual nails or shingles. It was just flat surfaces, endlessly as far as the eye could see.

Sasuke and Karin were right where he'd left them, only this time Sasuke was conscious and looking displeased and per usual. His eyes locked onto Tobi the moment he stepped foot into the dimension. The first thing Karin did was gasp. Sasuke, on the other hand, felt it more appropriate to demand.

"Let us out of here," he said.

"Relax would you?" This boy remained as bratty as ever. "I even have a little souvenir waiting for you outside."

With that, he transferred both of them back to where he'd just been on the stone bridge with Danzou.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed further, his sharingan spinning as he eyed the man.

"Uchiha Sasuke, eh?" Danzou maintained his usual apathetic posture. Now all Tobi had to do was sit back and watch.

"You'd better get out of here," Tobi recommended, turning to Karin, who sat in shock on the ground. Clearly, teleportation did not agree with her. "If you get dragged into this, you're toast."

And little did Tobi know, as he teleported away from the confused Uzumaki, how right he was.

-

He'd been confused at first, Sasuke had to admit, waking up in Madara's alternate dimension with only Karin to fill him in on details that she wasn't entirely sure about, either. He remembered the Tsuchikage, his attack, and then everything after that went black. Apparently Madara had been the one to save him.

Even with his close brush with death, Sasuke felt nothing but hatred for the man standing in front of him. He didn't care if he died, too. All he wanted to do was take this man with him.

There was a device on Danzou’s arm that Madara seemed to recognize with odd-looking nobs that spun. But, rather than adjusting the device on his forearm, Danzou began removing the device.

"I couldn't have ask for more," he stated, his voice a banal monotone. The last of the bandages unraveled and the odd contraption on his forearm fell to the ground, revealing the horror show on the man's right arm. "Now I can add both your sharingans to my collection."

There were sharingans—actual  _eyes_ , embedded on the man's entire right arm.

Sasuke should have been horrified, but, considering everything he’d learned about the man in his months training with Madara, he wasn't.

"What's with you right arm?" the Uchiha questioned, thinking he may as well goad the man a little. Perhaps he could attain some useful information to aid him in the fight.

"They've all got their stories. It would take too long to tell them all."

"Just as well." The only thing battling right now was their monotones, and Sasuke intended to change that. "Hearing the reason would only make me angrier. I've already settled on killing you."

Danzou’s face, at least outwardly, showed no reaction.

"But," Sasuke continued, "before I do, I need to ask you one question."

He waited. Still nothing. Here it went.

"Did you and the rest of the leaf village elders really order Uchiha Itachi to slaughter my entire clan?" His eyes were a seething glare. But, rather than speaking, Danzou performed hand signs.

Rabbit, boar, and sheep, Sasuke recognized.

Then Danzou charged him, his fist attempting a strike at Sasuke's midsection only for one of Susanoo’s ribs to block him. When the elder looked up at him again, Sasuke's eyes had gone from their usual triple tomoe sharingan to the star shape of his Amaterasu.

Rather than allow the man time to react, Sasuke captured him in one of Susanoo's claws, which, unlike the ribs, actually contained flesh.

"So this is Susanoo, I presume?" Danzou's voice remained infuriatingly even. Did nothing rile this man? That combined with everything else only made Sasuke angrier, and with the man captured in Susanoo's claw, Sasuke asked his question again, only this time, louder.

"I said, 'Is it true?!'" Sasuke yelled, his fists clenched. He could feel himself shaking as adrenaline pumped through his system, causing his chakra to spike.

"Damn you, Itachi," the man muttered, almost to himself, but loudly enough for Sasuke to hear him. "You told all your secrets right before you died, didn't you?" He sounded, at most, inconvenienced. "I guess you really were special to him."

At hearing this, Sasuke lost it, and all he saw was red.

"So," he seethed, "it was true."

All of Susannoo began to materialize, far beyond his ribs and hand. Karin screamed behind him, but Sasuke paid her no heed.

"To be a shinobi is to sacrifice oneself." Despite being captured in Susanoo’s grip, Danzou didn't budge. "Closing your eyes to the sunlight, distinguishing yourself in the shadows… that is the true form of a ninja."

Danzou continued his monologue, "Itachi was just one ninja among countless others across history who died the way he did. There are ugly truths in this world,  _young man,"_ and for the first time that entire fight, his voice, rather than being even, became condescending. "But it's thanks to them that peace is preserved. But you…" Now, his tone was angry. "You've rejected Itachi's will, his cause. You'll never understand. And by revealing his secret to you, Itachi has betrayed the Hidden Leaf—"

"Don't ever speak Itachi's name again." On Sasuke’s command, Susanno crushed the man with a chakra-infused hand, cutting the elder’s sentence short. Blood splattered in all direction, even on Sasuke's face, but the relief was short lived.

The whole thing had been an illusion and Danzou appeared behind him.

"Yes, from here on out, we talk with our eyes."

The illusion dispersed and Danzou reappeared on the pillar where Tobi had initially stood. By now, Susanoo's horns were visible around the sullen mass of flesh that was Sasuke.

"Impeccable offensive power as well," Danzou remarked, actually sounding impressed.

Sasuke glared at him from his position on the ground.

"So," Danzou continued, "what kind of jutsu is it?" In the least, he hadn't known everything about Itachi.

Sasuke responded by punching the ground with Susannoo, dissembling the bridge and throwing everyone off center.

"Tch." Eyes locked on target, Sasuke charged, Susanoo's horned skull surrounding him with an eerie purple glow. Danzou had jumped in the air in an attempt to avoid the explosion, but that was exactly what Sasuke wanted as he activated his next jutsu.

_Amaterasu!_ A cluster of black flames sprang to life on the robes of his enemy.

Tears of blood blurred Sasuke's left eye as he scanned for Danzou. That had been way too fast and screaming involved.

Then Karin screamed, "Behind you!" and Sasuke felt Danzou's chakra reappear in that exact location.

"Fuuton! Shikuu Gyaku!" The man spat air at him in the form of a wind jutsu, but blown at such a high speed that it created a vacuum and felt like bullets. Only thanks to the sharingan, Sasuke dodged the multiple attacks and countered with a jutsu of his own.

Closing his left eye, Sasuke used some of the blood from his arm and formed the hand sign for a summoning jutsu.

_Guess I finally get to use this in actual combat._ It certainly beat experimental training with Madara.

Sasuke leaped into the air and, to his opponent’s surprise, off the edge of the semi-demolished bridge. But, rather than falling to death, the Uchiha landed on the back of a giant hawk, its beak tucked, wings spread, and talons exposed.

Danzou's astonishment at the new summons bought the Uchiha few seconds to recover. Then the man chuckled darkly to himself and said, “You are indeed Itachi's little brother."

Even with blood blurring the left side of his vision, Sasuke glared. The hawk lurched forward, headed toward Danzou. Sasuke channeled chakra to his feet to ensure he wouldn't fall, but that was hardly his primary concern right now.

"Didn't I tell you not to speak of Itachi?" he snapped.

The pseudo-hokage remained unaffected. "Brother," he sighed. "So while your powers are the same, what your eyes discern are different. The truth of Itachi and its implication isn't important enough to you. You lie in the grip of hate, just wanting to last out."

Danzou held his sharingan infused arm up to conceal half his face, including his mouth. Nonetheless, Sasuke heard him say, "Making the sacrifice of the Uchiha clan for naught!"

Did Sasuke know he was he lashing out by doing this? Yes. Did he care if it made everything Itachi ever did “all for naught”?

No.

When the hawk summons drew close enough, Sasuke dismounted, using the creature’s back as a springboard, his eyes fixed on target. Danzou drew in a breath for another wind jutsu, and, as he did so, Sasuke unsheathed his lightning blade. But, before Sasuke could strike, the man's right arm captured the Uchiha in a chokehold.

Sasuke sliced the grotesque appendage only for the one-armed version of Danzou to disappear and then reappear on one of the few remaining pillars of the demolished bridge, glaring down at the boy. His right arm remained intact.

All had been a gentjutsu. Again.

_My turn,_ Sasuke thought. He activated a jutsu not entirely his own: Itachi's crows.

Sasuke disappeared from sight, a cawing mass of black feathers replacing him.

The flock flew toward the elder and clustered behind him, but the birds did not materialize to form Sasuke. When the black feathers cleared, Danzou recognized the displeased expression of a three-sided sharingan pinwheel, long flowing hair, and a pair of familiar stress lines accentuated with an even more familiar black and red uniform.

It was an illusion, but all Danzou could see was Uchiha Itachi. Black flames encircled both their figures.

"I'll commend you for actually trapping me in an illusion," he remarked. While his back was turned, distracted by Amaterasu and the Itachi clone, Sasuke sped, using every ounce of chakra he had to bury his sword in the elder’s back. But, before his weapon could break skin, for some reason, Sasuke stopped.

Why did he stop?

"However…" Danzou rotated his head to look at Sasuke, who stood frozen in place. The Uchiha felt something creep up his skin, similar to the curse mark, but rather than giving him power, it froze him. "Compared to Itachi's Tsukuyomi, where he could alter an individual’s perception of time at his whim, you're as far below him as the land is from the sky."

Sasuke's blood didn't have time to boil; he expended far too much energy trying to move as tire-like marking spread from the tip of his toes to the top of his head. The Uchiha’s mind flashed back to when Danzou caught him in that chokehold.

_That must have been when this happened._ Sasuke would grimace, if he could. He was a sitting duck. Right now, Danzou could do anything he wanted.

While Sasuke struggled to move, Danzou approached him, and he would have reached him, too, had Karin not chosen then of all times to interfere.

She tried, Sasuke would give her that, but the attempt was pathetically brief. Danzou saw her coming immediately and only diverted his attention away from Sasuke for a moment to kick the girl away, successfully knocking the wind out of her. It was simple strike, but it had worked.

From where he was, all Sasuke could do was watch.

Next, Danzou spared a glance at Tobi. The Akatsuki leader had begun to rise to his feet, but Sasuke doubted it would be to help him. His luck had run out at the summit with the kage's. Madara would hardly expend any effort to rescue him again.

"If Sasuke knows the truth about Itachi, Akatsuki must know as well," Danzou stated, eyes fixed on the elder Uchiha. "There's no more hiding it."

_No shit!_ Sasuke wanted to yell, but couldn’t.

Danzou turned his attention back to Sasuke, and, using his unmarked left hand, began prying Sasuke's weapon out of what used to be an iron grip.

"Why, Itachi," Danzou lamented, almost to himself. "Why did you bother saving this pathetic infant's life?" With a final slip, Sasuke's blade was gone. "Look at him," Danzou continued, "Look at what he's become. Your one, your only…  _failure._ " He raised the blade to the Uchiha's throat and pulled his arm back to strike.

As the weapon drew closer and closer to his jugular, memories filled Sasuke’s head, memories of Itachi and his clan, of Madara, of learning the truth. Giving up, allowing this to happen—that would accomplish nothing. Danzou would find a way to keep the truth covered, even if it meant murdering half the world.

Sasuke couldn’t die here. He refused. So, in one last ditch effort, Sasuke activated his sharingan, and with that Susanoo.

The creature appeared and stopped the blade centimeters from his neck. From there, Susanoo's bony hand stretched out and slapped Danzou off his feet, cutting the man's left arm and releasing Sasuke's sword from his grip.

When Sasuke tried to move again, although it hurt like hell, he was successful.

The Uchiha screamed as pain and power shot through his body. Susanoo surrounded him in a cloud of purple chakra, but this time, it didn't stop with the bones and ligaments. It was full, formed. The creature had skin, a face, and now  _weapons._  Even in his training with Madara, Sasuke had never gotten this far.

Danzou’s tire-like seal began to retreat, first from Sasuke’s face, then his torso, and further down from there, allowing him to move again in a way that didn't cause him quite the same amount of pain.

Susanoo's newfound weapon, a bow and arrow composed entirely of chakra, cocked back and fired, aimed at Danzou. A cloud of dust from the rubble exploded along with the arrow, and, when it cleared, Danzou could be seen, still standing. His sharingan arm was fully visible, and that wasn't all—in addition to the sinister-looking eyes imbedded in the necrotic white flesh of his forearm, there was an even stranger attachment on the man's shoulder resembling a face.

The first hokage's face.

Bit of wood protruded from the eerie-looking face that extended to connect with a tree that Danzou, or at least what appeared to be Danzou, stood beside. The tree hadn’t been there before and had likely appeared due to the overgrowth of a separate regeneration jutsu.

The Uchiha panted, his eyes taking everything in and trying to distinguish between reality and genjutsu.

_If Danzou’s down to using DNA from the first hokage’s DNA to regenerate,_ Sasuke mused, _he must be almost out of ideas._ Could he risk using another arrow?

Karin spoke up again.

"Sasuke!" she screamed. "That's the real Danzou! You'll be able to kill him now!"

And that answered that.

Sasuke fired another projectile at the elder, but it didn't take and he reappeared elsewhere, performing hand signs. Sasuke would have fired yet another projectile, but something stopped him.

It began as an odd burning sensation in his lungs, which was certainly saying something considering how much the rest of his body also hurt. But, within seconds, the pain in his lungs became overwhelming, and the next thing Sasuke knew, he was doubled over and coughing up mouthfuls of blood.

_-_

_Izanagi,_ Tobi thought with interest as he watched Sasuke fight the Uchiha clan’s elderly enemy.

Sasuke had managed to activate Susanoo’s third level. Tobi had to admit, the boy progressed more quickly than Tobi assumed he would However, judging by the way Sasuke had just coughed up blood for the second time that day, his body couldn't last much longer.

But Danzou…

Tobi's sharingan spun as one of Izanagi's arrow's pierced the elder, but, rather than suffering the hit, what used to be the real Danzou sizzled into an illusion.

That hadn’t been a clone. Somehow, Danzou had gotten his hands on Izanagi, one of the Uchiha clan’s most powerful forbidden techniques.

_For the briefest moments, the user can take disadvantages like wounds or even death and turn them into nothing more than a dream._ Sasuke had the potential for Izanagi, too, but would he use it?

As Tobi watched, Danzou executed the hand signs for his vacuum bullet once again, but Susanoo deflected it.

The best part about Izanagi, aside from being the ultimate offense and defense, was its ability to take attacks or ideas and make them real.

_The ultimate illusion, meant only to be used on oneself._ Complete control over one's own personal reality. But, even with all that power, there were downsides.  _And afterward, the eyes of one who uses Izanagi will be stricken blind, and close tight forever._

Multiple eyes on Danzou’s forearm began to close, mirroring the Akatsuki leader’s thoughts. Still, Danzou was lasting unnaturally long for a non-Uchiha. Hatake Kakashi would be dead if he tried to use his sharingan for this long.

_He must have let Orochimaru experiment on him somehow to force the technique to last longer._ It would make sense. As much as the two had detested each other, they knew how to collaborate.

Then Danzou did something completely unexpected.

He performed a summoning jutsu, and it was an… elephant?

The enormous beast stamped the ground, blowing air loudly from its trunk as large eyes narrowed in Sasuke’s direction. Then, almost for dramatic effect, it screamed with its actual mouth, somehow even more loudly. The creature shot a barrage of wind attacks at the young Uchiha, which Susanoo once again deflected. Karin, on the other hand, was forced to take new cover before her current one was painfully destroyed.

_That summon… a Baku?_ Leave it to Danzou.  _The mythical chimera that devours nightmares. It's bigger than I would expect._ Obito had only read about those. Even in all his years, he'd never seen one before in person, which made sense why he hadn't recognized it immediately. In his defense, it did legitimately resemble an elephant.

Danzou closed in on Sasuke once again, but the boy retaliated with Goukakyuu no jutsu, using his enemy's wind technique to fan the flames of his grand fireball jutsu.

After that technique was done—of course Danzou managed to dodge, but in the least his summons had been cancelled—both parties momentarily retreated. Sasuke panted; Danzou grimaced. Then Karin interrupted their intensive stare down.

"Sasuke!" she called from her new hiding place, "I've figured out something about his technique! Listen up!"

Tobi raised a dark eyebrow in the redhead's direction. If her words were correct, perhaps he’d prejudged her.

"So," Sasuke reinterred, "when all ten of those eyes on your arm close, your technique will end."

Danzou looked dumbfounded. Tobi gave the redhead a mental pat. As annoying as she was, she was right in this case.

"You…" Danzou stuttered. "You know about Izanagi?"

Sasuke chucked and rushed forward, still surrounded with the ominous purple chakra.

"I do now!"

"That old trick. You're a precocious brat!"

_That may be true,_ Tobi had to agree,  _but he’s a precocious brat who managed to trick you._

"You moron!" Karin chimed in again. "Why are you attacking? You need to run away! Fight him at long range!"

_That would be pointless._  Nevermind, then. She wasn't quite that intelligent.  _Danzou would just release Izanagi. Sauke's striking hard and fast with Susanoo to force him to keep the technique activated and drain his chakra._

Susanoo reverted back to its skeletal form, but two more eyes had closed on Danzou's arm. Both opponent’s chakra rapidly drained.

Danzou and Sasuke were in proximity of each other now. Danzou threw a spray of kunai, which Sasuke countered using the lightning seal on his wrist. Danzou clutched another kunai in his right hand and Sasuke his blade. Sharignans blazed; their mouths fixed in battle cries.

The next thing Tobi saw was Sasuke stabbing Danzou clean through. But was it the real one?

"You were too soon," Danzou said. If it was the real one, it hadn't registered yet. "One eye is still open! Go and join Itachi and listen to him lecture you." The elder drew in a breath to laugh, but, by the looks of it found it oddly difficult. "I…" he began, but stopped short. His only visible eye widened.

"What is happening?" the man mustered. Although Danzou clearly thought he hit Sasuke just as Sasuke had hit him, the Uchiha brought his head up for the man to find another matter entirely.

Danzou's supposed hit disappeared and he was left with reality. Sasuke's sword still impaled him.

_Danzou, it's just as you said,_ Tobi thought, genuinely amused.  _It's no match for Itachi's Tsukuyomi, which can control time._

When the elder looked down at his right arm, the last eye that Sasuke's illusion had lead him to believe was still open was, in fact, closed.

"You bastard!" he swore. This time, Sasuke was the undaunted one.

"You're the one who's going to join Itachi!" Sasuke declared, and, with a final lightning charge, the boy turned his blade to remove it from the elder's body. But while Danzou, the real Danzou, fell to the ground, more blood dripped from Sasuke's mouth.

_It was a weak genjutsu that doesn't last long, but the trick is knowing when to use it. The last of Danzou's sharingan must have closed not long before they stabbed each other._ Tobi mentally commended the boy for his impeccable timing.

_Sasuke is from the Uchiha clan, and a ninja with the Mangekyou sharignan. From an observer's perspective, he's better than you, Danzou. Sasuke cast a genjutsu on you before you noticed and made it look as if the last eye was still open. You can't tell how long Izanagi is going to last yourself, so you were constantly double-checking the eyes on your arm, and Sasuke didn't let that escape his notice._

_He knew he had to use genjutsu on you, even if only long enough to make you think there was still time left on Izanagi. Sasuke's not the type who fails to take advantage of that._

This time, Obito spoke his thoughts aloud, knowing that Danzou, who currently bled out on the cracked concrete of what used to be a bridge, could hear him. "Because you managed to get your hands on some sharingans, you underestimated a true sharingan user in a fight. _That_ was your downfall!"

"Don't mess with the Uchiha," Sasuke concurred. "This is a battle of eyes."

_Even though he couldn't use Shisui's eye, you did a good job defeating Danzou, Sasuke._  Tobi smiled at his next realization.  _I should be able to get Shisui's eye soon._ That would definitely make a few things easier.  _The ROOTs should have stayed hidden in the ground._

While Sasuke went to revitalize himself with Karin's heal bite (which, frankly, Tobi swore he would never get used to, regardless of how effective it may be), Tobi stood to survey the area.

"I made the right choice in bringing her along," he remarked, his gaze on Karin, who screamed, oddly sensually, at the feeling of Sasuke biting her wrist. "She's been helpful."

Danzou seemed to be down for good. As an old man, he shouldn’t have much blood left; however, fate had other plans.

Tobi and Karin were the first to notice, but Sasuke quickly caught on to the sudden surge of chakra as the implanted cells of the first hokage overtook the man’s experimentally mutated right arm.

A tree began to sprout from the man's bleeding body. It would have overtaken the rest of Danzou’s body, too; however, in a last ditch effort to save himself, Danzou used what little chakra he had left to remove the arm, sharingan eyes and all.

_Looks like he's too close to death to fully control his chakras,_  Tobi mused, thankful he’d been wise enough to keep his distance.  _It can't be easy to control Harashima's powers._ The face on the upper bicep of his arm had been creepy, but was admittedly powerful.

"He just doesn't give up," Karin remarked, looking far less worried than she should as Danzou stripped the bandages from his left eye.

"I'm not done yet!" he declared. Shisui’s implanted iris spun into a mangekyou. "The battle of the eyes…" he paused to pant, "is just beginning!"

_His right eye is working again, huh?_ Tobi deduced, interest piqued.  _I see, so he was just using Izanagi until Shisui's eye worked again._

Sasuke attacked the now one-armed man with a quickly executed chidori, Kakashi's technique. Tobi hated that technique with every fiber in his being, but a part of him hoped it would be the jutsu to finally finish off Danzou.

Sadly, Sasuke's chidori only managed to hit air. In the milliseconds it took Sasuke to move, Danzou performed a teleportation jutsu towards… Karin?

_Oh no._ Tobi immediately realized what the man was about to do.

Sure enough, Danzou seized the girl around the neck in a one-armed chokehold. After giving Sasuke so much of her chakra to recover, she was helpless.

Sasuke glared at the man from over his shoulder, lightning chakra from the chidori still chirping in his left hand.

_Shisui's Doryoku,_  Tobi analyzed the teleportation jutsu.  _Looks like he can't decide whether he wants to use it as a genjutsu or throw it away like Izanagi._  Although, granted, throwing away Izanagi had been in favor of not being crushed by one of Harashima's tree jutsus, which now stood tall behind them. Frankly, Tobi would have chosen a one-armed fate, as well.

Both parties settled into stances as Karin struggled beneath Danzou's grasp, albeit uselessly.

"You've… used your eyes too much…" Danzou panted, somehow maintaining his grip around Karin's neck.

"Sasuke…" the girl groaned. Her tone was pleading. Sasuke's expression remained blank.

_What will you do, Sasuke?_ Tobi wondered. This could go a number of ways.

"I can't believe you'd take a hostage," he said stoically, which gave Tobi no indication, "after all your talk of self-sacrifice."

"It's…. not my life I'm worried about!" Danzou retorted breathily. "This is for Konoha! For the ninja world! I can't die now! I'll do anything to survive. I… am…" he panted again, "the only one who can change with world…." The old man's lips twisted into a smile, thinking he had the boy in a stalemate. "This girl will be sacrificed for that!"

But how wrong he was.

"Sasuke, help!"

"Karin," Sasuke began, so quietly that Tobi, if not for his sharingan, wouldn’t have detected it. "Don't move."

Sasuke's chakra became so cold that even Tobi wouldn't have recognized him as the boy used the energy from his chidori to pierce Danzou with Karin in the middle.

The redhead's eyes widened in shock as streaks of blood slipped from her mouth. Danzou looked even worse than she did, and all Tobi could do was smirk.

"Nii-san," Sasuke grinned manically. The matted hair and blood staining his face only added to his look of lunacy. "That's one down…"


	43. Chapter 43

Haruno Sakura glared silently as she and her team sped across the mossy forest ground, following Kiba's instructions as he tracked Sasuke's scent. To her relief, although it was still tense, they'd traveled most of the way in silence thus far. But then Lee had to open his mouth.

"Sakura-san," the green beast began.

"What?" Irritation showed plainly in her tone and on her face.

"Don't you think you ought to tell Naruto-kun the truth?"

Although Lee was looking at her, Sakura couldn't bring herself to return the gaze and instead kept staring straight ahead.

"There's no way I could tell him," she replied curtly. "I just can't!"

"Sakura, you underestimate Naruto," Kiba chimed in softly. His line of vision was slightly below theirs due to Akamaru being his transportation. Suddenly, the Inuzuka jerked his head to the side, as if he sensed something.

"What is it Kiba?" Sakura inquired, glancing over her shoulder.

"I've found Sasuke!" Kiba declared. "That Tobi guy is with him, too!"

"Everyone stop!" Sakura commanded, and although most everyone looked confused, they obeyed.

"What, why are we stopping?" Kiba questioned. "We already agreed on formation."

Sai shot the pink-haired girl a suspicious glance, but Sakura ignored him.

"Kiba, exactly how far away is Sasuke?" she asked instead.

"He's straight north, about two o'clock," the Inuzuka answered, his tone thoughtful. "About one kilometer ahead of us!"

It was time.  _I'm going to hate myself for this later,_ Sakura thought, bringing a hand out of her pocket.  _Guys, I'm sorry._  Right now, this wasn't about her. Her palm concealed a tiny smoke bomb, but, just before she could detonate the device, a pale gloved hand stopped her.

Sakura's eyes widened. "Sai?!"

"I knew it! You were going to put us to sleep with this!" The artist's eyes narrowed as he gripped her wrist. The others erupted into a cacophony of more confusion.

"What's going on?" Lee questioned. Akamaru barked. Kiba blanched with a, "What?!"

"Looks like Sakura wanted to take care of Sasuke on her own," Sai explained, fully prying the smoke bomb from Sakura's own gloved fingers.

Sakura stared dejectedly at the ground as the truth set in with the others.

"Alone?" Kiba echoed. "But why?"

"Yeah!" Lee reinforced. "You promised we'd do it together!"

"No." Sai darkly turned to the others. "I won't let  _anyone_  past."

"Why not?" Sakura demanded. Rage bubbled within her. She'd known she couldn't trust Sai, but he had to pull this now of all times?

"I knew this guy was shady!" Kiba accused. Akamaru barked in agreement.

"There's no way we can beat Sasuke or Tobi," Sai said calmly. He turned his gaze back to her. "I promised Kakashi-sensei I wouldn't let you go."

Sakura clenched her fist and pulled her left glove tighter like she usually did before punching something solid. "Sai," she began, "I'm only going to say this once: get out of my way!"

"No, I can't let you go," Sai repeated firmly, holding out his right arm for emphasis. That same arm held a paint brush. He muttered a jutsu, and, within seconds, chakra-infused ink rose from the ground in the form of odd-looking serpents.

"You think you can stop us with your snakes?" Lee's eyes were serious now.

"I get what Kakashi-sensei is saying," Kiba began, "but we can't just keep letting Sasuke get away! I'm going to settle this once and for all!" Akamaru barked agin, but not in agreement. This time, even Sakura could tell, he sounded afraid as he cowered between his owner's legs, now whimpering.

"What is it, Akamaru?" Kiba inquired, his eyes scanning the frightened canine. "Don't be scared!"

"Looks like your dog is smarter than you," Sai taunted.

"Shut up!" Kiba snapped. In response, Sai's ink creations hissed menacingly.

_Great, just what we need. Unnecessary fighting among ourselves._ It took every ounce of self-control Sakura had not to roll her eyes. Instead, she said, "Let's go, Lee!" and she and Konoha's Green Beast charged toward Sai.

Kiba prepared an attack of his own, declaring, "Tsuga will take care of these," and began spinning for said jutsu. Sai looked ready to counter, but stopped short when his eyes rested on Sakura again, specifically the three tiny orbs she'd just tossed at his feet. Unable to resist, Sakura smirked.

_Sorry, everyone._ For real, this time.

Sakura took shelter behind a tree as her much-smaller-but-just-as-effective flash bombs detonated, leaving her teammates in a tangle of semi-consciousness. Even Akamaru was out, although he looked the closest to a peaceful sleep of any of them.

Sadly, Sakura didn't have time to notice details or check anyone's vitals. On that thought, she sprinted as fast as she could in the direction Kiba stated.

_Wait for me, Sasuke-kun!_  The Haruno girl grimaced, jade eyes glazing, but she didn't cry.

Not yet, anyway.

When she arrived, she found Sasuke at a demolished bridge with a very odd tree fully grown in the middle of it. She could hear the orange-masked one named Tobi speaking. There were three presences there, including Sasuke, although one of them was weak. Deathly weak.

"Sasuke," Tobi said, "I have a piece of advice for you." Sasuke didn't reply. "If you don't have any further you for that girl, then kill her. She knows too much about us."

_Girl?_  Sakura's question was answered when her gaze descended to the weak chakra presence on the ground, lying in a puddle of her own blood.

"Us?" Sasuke echoed the word from Tobi's statement. "When did we become allies?"

Sakura watched as the orange-masked man disappeared into a teleportation spiral, his last words being, "Heh, fine. Until we meet again."

The elder Uchiha's chakra disappeared. Now she was alone with Sasuke and whoever that girl was. Her timing had to be perfect. If she startled Sasuke or didn't play her part correctly, this could go terribly wrong.

Sasuke's hand lit up the chidori as he slowly meandered over to what appeared to be his fallen comrade. She had to put a stop to this  _now_.

Sakura drew breath into her lungs and screamed.

"SASUKE-KUN!"

The lightning coursing through his fist ceased. Sasuke turned his gaze where she stood on one of the bridge's few remaining pillars. Their eyes met. Coal orbs stared into her jade green.

"Sakura." That was his voice, but his face—blood dripped from his mouth and what looked like, but couldn't be—teardrops from his left eye.

_He's like a different person. Is this really Sasuke?_

"What do you want with me?" His tone was flat and cold. Colder than she ever remembered.

"Sasuke-kun!" she repeated. "I will follow you! I'll leave Konoha!"

She jumped down from her perch and landed a good distance away from him. Despite her treasonous statement, he looked unphased.

"Why would you want to join me?" he questioned, still deadpan. "What are you trying to pull?"

"I have no ulterior motive!" she lied, her eyes as sincere as she could make them. "Since you left the Leaf Village, I've regretted not going with you!"

"Do you know I what I want to do?" he said darkly.

"I don't care! I'll follow any order you give me—"

"To crush the Leaf!" he cut off. "That is my goal."

Sakura's eyes widened. Even if she'd known, it felt completely different coming directly from his mouth. Regardless, she had to do this, no matter how much it hurt.

"Are you really willing to betray the Leaf for me?" he reiterated.

"Yes," Sakura insisted, "if that's what you want me to do."

"Hmf. Then prove it," he all but pouted, his expression dubious, and then made a motion with his hand at the redhead girl bleeding at his feet. "Kill her, and I'll accept your offer."

His eyes were narrowed. She just looked surprised again.

Sakura slipped a kunai—one of the poisoned ones that Shizune had taught her how to make—from her cloak. Even with all her training, she couldn't help but hesitate.

"Who is she?" Sakura asked instead.

"A member of my organization 'Taka,'" he replied. "As you can see, she's useless to me now. Actually…" he trailed off, but only briefly. "You're a medical ninja, aren't you, Sakura? This works out perfectly. You can take her place."

Sakura edged closer, but not close enough to kill.

_How heartless._  The Sasuke-kun she'd known would never do this. Never.  _He's completely changed._

Three more steps and she was there, standing above the unfortunate redhead, kunai raised.

_She doesn't matter,_  Sakura tried to convince herself.  _If I… if I…_

"Well?" Sasuke prodded." Can't you handle this,  _Sakura_?" The way he emphasized her name only proved to taunt her more.

_If I can stab Sasuke-kun right now,_  she finished, her expression grimacing,  _this will all end!_

Amid the emotional turmoil, Sakura failed to notice her former teammate sinisterly creep up behind her. It was actually the girl at her feet, the one she was supposed to kill, who warned her.

"Sasuke… don't do it…" she murmured through a mouthful of blood.

Sakura didn't realize what was going on until she heard the crackle of a familiar lightning jutsu, and, by then, it was too late.

She didn't quite register what happened next. Something knocked her to the ground, but when she sat up again, no harm had come to her body—the crackling lightning never touched her.

A familiar figure stood in front of her, donning a striped khaki cloak eerily similar to hers.

Wild silver hair pointed in all directions as Hatake Kakashi held Sasuke's lightning infused fist in one hand and what used to be Sakura's kunai in the other.

"You've fallen so low, Sasuke."

-

"You've fallen so low, Sasuke." Kakashi was sad to say he could actually believe his eyes.

_He meant to kill her_ , Kakashi thought as he eyed the Uchiha's demeanor. Sasuke was so consumed with rage. It had been bad enough finding Kiba, Sai, and Lee rendered unconscious.

_This day just keeps getting better and better…_

The moment didn't last long as Sasuke, still in Kakashi's grip, pivoted his body to throw a kick at Kakashi's head. The copy ninja blocked the strike and retorted with a kick of his own. With both strikes being blocked and Sasuke finally free from Kakashi's grip, both parties retreated a few yards back to regroup.

"Ha! They just keep coming!" Sasuke remarked with a sadistic smile.

Kakashi, in the meantime, returned Sakura's kunai.

"You were trying to kill Sasuke on your own, weren't you Sakura?" He spoke without turning around. It was a rhetorical question, but she needed the scolding.

She didn't reply and rather examined at the ground, fiddling with the weapon in her gloved hands.

"There's no reason," Kakashi began, his tone now soothing instead of scolding, "for you to shoulder this burden all by yourself." He turned back to his former student. "As leader of Team Seven, I blame my own personal shortcomings for the team failing." Then, he switched back to the pink-haired girl. "Sakura, it was irresponsible of me to say what I did just to make you feel better."

_Don't worry,_  he remembered himself saying those three years ago,  _everything will go back to the way it was soon._

It had been a lie and he'd known it. He just hadn't wanted to see her so upset. Honestly, he hadn't wanted to acknowledge the harsh reality that had also made him feel upset.

"Maybe I was just trying to convince myself," he said aloud. "I apologize, I've been a terrible sensei to you all."

"No, you—" Sakura began, but Kakashi didn't let her finish.

"Sasuke," he said, returning his gaze to his former student, "I hate having to repeat myself, but I'll say this one last time." He paused both for emphasis and to draw in a proper breath. "Stop your obsession with revenge!"

This boy still had so much to live for. Why couldn't he just see that?

Then Sasuke did the most terrifying thing yet. He started laughing. Hysterically. And just as quickly as it had begun, it stopped.

"Bring back Itachi," Sasuke said, his eyes dark, "and my mother and father." The Uchiha paused, and Kakashi could tell he was about to yell again. "And my clan, bring them all back!" Somehow, his voice grew louder, "THEN I'LL STOP!"

He'd gone completely insane. Sasuke wasn't just deceived; he was out of his mind. Somehow, Kakashi remained calm, at least on the outside.

"I don't want to kill you, Sasuke."

"Oh, you think you can just take me out whenever you want, huh?" he taunted, eyes glinting crazily. "Don't act like you're still my teacher; that time's over! I want to kill you so badly I can taste it!"

_Madara's corrupted him so much._  But, there were more important matters at hand.

"Sakura," Kakashi turned back to the pink-haired girl. She didn't need to see this. "Take this girl and get her stabilized to the point where she can talk. There's still time." The last thing that needed to happen today was for more innocent blood to be shed. Additionally, saving that other girl's life would get Sakura out of here.

"And you, Sensei?"

"Sakura, take that girl," he repeated, "and get out of here."

She didn't like his answer. Even without looking directly at her, he could tell. So he turned to her with one of his nicest smiles he could muster which involved closing the only eye he could currently see out of.

"I'll see this through with the same determination and resolve as you," he assured. "That is my job, after all."

Hesitancy remained, and she didn't move. Perhaps this would take a third try.

"Now get going, Sakura!" he urged.

Finally, she obeyed. While Sakura picked up the redhead and jumped away, Kakashi removed the hitiate obscuring his implanted sharingan.

"No matter how far he fell, the Third always looked at Orochimaru with affection," Kakashi stated, his attention now fully on Sasuke. "I think I understand now, what he went through all those years ago."

The brilliant crimson of Obito's sharingan stared into Sasuke's as Kakashi closed his natural eye and the Uchiha attempted to taunt him further.

"Well, then," Sasuke countered, punching his right fist into an open palm. He activated the star-shaped version of his own Tsukuyomi. "You and the Third will have plenty to talk about when you join him!"

Kakashi paid him no heed and instead glanced back one more time to ensure Sakura and the injured redhead had indeed gotten to safety. He could feel the redhead's chakra stabilizing a good distance away from them.

_Good,_ Kakashi thought. They were safe. Sasuke, however, did not appreciate his inattention.

"You listen to me," the Uchiha began, his head tilted down, "The sharingan is a symbol of the Uchiha…" he trailed off, and Kakashi, based on previous evidence, knew what was coming—Sasuke started screaming. "A lowlife outsider like you has no right to go around showing that eye off!"

As he yelled, Sasuke charged at him.

In what felt like a split second, the creature from earlier,  _Susanoo_ , Kakashi did believe Madara referred to it as, launched a projectile attack at Kakashi, which he barely managed to avoid using his interdimensional mangekyou.

Their fight graduated below the demolished bridge and onto the water, which Kakashi was glad for, considering Sakura and the redheaded girl were technically still up there. By now, both he and Sasuke were panting.

_That was too fast,_  Kakashi thought, amazed at how strong Sasuke had grown in all his hatred.  _My only option was to warp it away with the mangekyou._

"So that's Susanoo, I take it?" Kakashi remarked, attempting to break the ice. Sasuke was not amused.

"I can't believe a non-Uchiha like you awakened the mangekyou!" he said, and inevitably, Kakashi thought back to Rin. A pang of regret shoot through his chest. "I hope you're grateful to the Uchiha!"

"Sasuke, your clan and your hatred can't be the only things left in your heart," he tried to reason. "Look deep inside yourself one last time." This had to work. Kakashi wanted so desperately not to kill this boy.

"Still reciting the same on pleas."

"You know what's really in there." Their sharignans stared into one another again, and, for once, Sasuke went silent.

"They're all laughing…" he began, and for a second, Kakashi allowed himself to hope, only for the boy's next words to dash it to pieces. "They're all laughing it up at the cost of Itachi's life!" he screamed hysterically. "Cackling in unison with no idea the price he paid!"

From there, Susanoo's chakra only became more sinister as the creature's physical form changed once into a horned skeleton with evil glowing eyes.

"But I'll change it!" Sasuke cackled. "I'll turn your laughter into screams of anguish!" And from that point on, that Kakashi knew any endeavor to save him was truly hopeless.

_This is bad news!_  He couldn't beat this, even with his sharingan. Just having used his magekyou, he was practically paralyzed.

But then, something happened. The skull-horned creature began to devolve, first back into the previous Susanoo and then to its muscular and finally skeletal form. The expression on Sasuke's face looked lost, like he didn't know where he was. Almost like he couldn't—

_He can't see!_  Kakashi realized.

"Fuck!" Sasuke swore loudly, his face buried in his hands. Then, much more quietly, he said, "My vision…"

_Of course!_ All that power couldn't have come without a serious price. Itachi had certainly paid it. Now Sasuke was, too. But, just when things were just starting to look up, everything turned to shit again.

While Sasuke rubbed his eyes, bemoaning their lost light, a pink-haired figure could be see above him, standing upside above him on the nearly demolished bridge's underside. She clutched the same poison kunai in her hands from earlier.

_Sakura, why did you come back?!_ Kakashi's mind screamed what his mouth couldn't.  _Stop!_

But she didn't. And of course, she hesitated. Right before she could bring herself to literally stab the boy she loved in the back, she faltered. Even without his sight, Sasuke could still sense her.

"Sakura!" Kakashi finally brought himself to speak, and with what little strength he had, he started running. He had to get there in time. He couldn't lose another student. Not Sakura.

The Uchiha's hand enclosed around the pink-haired girl's throat. Simultaneously, Kakashi felt himself stumble on the water's surface.

_Shit! This had to happen the second after I used to the mangekyou!_

All he could do is watch as Sasuke, still holding the pink-haired girl in a chokehold, swiped the kunai from her hand and brought it toward her throat.

"Don't do it, Sasuke!" Kakashi yelled, but his words went unheard.

Finally, something good happened. The kunai never made contact, and Sakura could breathe again.

Water splashed in all directions as a familiar orange and black clad figure crashed onto the scene, an unharmed Sakura in toe and a small cut on his cheek. The two of them landed on the water area behind Kakashi. A new eye color met the crimson of Sasuke's sharingan as the rivals glared at each other.

It was Naruto.

In the split second everyone was distracted, Kakashi took advantage of the moment to reach Sasuke and throw a punch of his own, which, to his relief, sent the boy flying. The Uchiha had managed to block Kakashi's strike with an X block, but there was at least enough space between them that Sasuke was forced to land a good distance away on top of the water.

"You've got even better timing than me, Naruto," Kakashi remarked, although his gaze remained locked on Sasuke. "I never expected you to come, but I'm sure as hell glad you did."

"T-thank you, Naruto," Sakura stuttered, not managing to rise to her feet just yet. Naruto, on the other hand, already stood.

"Sasuke," he began, his tone oddly calm, just like when Sai's clone had talked to them, "Sakura-chan is a part of Team Seven, just like us."

"In case you forgot, I'm  _ex_ -Team Seven," he retorted, a twisted smile on his lips.

"Was that proof enough, Naruto? Sasuke's not the same person, anymore." If this didn't convince the boy, nothing would.

"Sasuke." Naruto spoke anyway, and for once the Uchiha mirrored exactly what Kakashi was thinking.

" _What?_ "

"Tobi told us the truth about Itachi!" Naruto revealed, and, Kakashi had to admit, now was a good time to mention what they knew. "I don't know if I believe him or not, but either way, everything you've done…." He trailed off, but only for a moment. "I understand why you did it!"

Sakura was likely confused, considering she was the only one currently left out of the loop regarding this particular detail, but Kakashi didn't have the time to explain things to her just yet.

"I told you once before," Sasuke stated, looking in the direction where Naruto voice had come from. "You never had parents or siblings. You never had  _anyone_." He paused to glare at the boy, and Kakashi knew the boy was going to yell again. "SO SHUT UP, YOU OUTSIDER!"

"Outsider" seemed to be the word of the day. He'd just called Kakashi that for having Obito's sharingan. Now it was Naruto's turn because Minato and Kushina had died the day he was born.

Then, Sakura chimed in.

"Naruto's had faith in you, Sasuke-kun!" she snapped. "No matter how badly the world slandered you, he considered you a friend!" Her voice quieted at her next words and her expression softened. "He still does."

"Just now, moments ago, I finally got revenge for Itachi on one of his betrayers," Sasuke informed. "One of the leaf's top brass. His name was Danzou."

Kakashi's eyes widened in disbelief.  _What? He killed Danzou?!_ No way…

Sakura, understandably, looked the most surprised of any of them.

"It was a high unlike anything I've ever felt!" he grinned manically, holding his arms out for emphasis." I was cleaning the Uchiha name of the stigma that's dogged it for all these years! Like I was freeing the Uchiha from being associated with the corrupt shinobi world! In a sense, it's what the Leaf has always wanted. After rejecting my clan for generations, I'm going to wipe it from your memories."

He paused, but only for his eyes to grow wider, more insane. "I'll kill every last one of you until the Leaf is crushed forever! Any link to the Uchiha will be severed and our name will be purified! That is how I'll revive my clan!"

Kakashi thought back to Akira, that odd blonde who somehow stole the heart of this twisted boy's brother. Even telling Sasuke about her, which Kakashi didn't intend to do anyway, would do nothing. He probably wouldn't even believe the words if Akira showed him Itachi's ring, as she had with Kakashi. Even the soundest logic would do nothing to convince him.

Despite everyone's combined efforts, he was too far gone.

_A history of hatred,_ Kakashi thought.  _That's what turned Sasuke into what he is now._

Just to make sure everyone was as alright as they could be, Kakashi glanced back at his two remaining students.

_Naruto and Sakura don't fully understand how Sasuke was a victim of that era, but they'll learn from experience soon enough._

While Kakashi pondered the situation, Naruto formed the hand sign for his shadow clone jutsu. Two clones appeared in a puff of smoke. Kakashi positioned himself in front of them both and held an arm out in Sakura's direction.

"This is my job!" he insisted. "Sakura, get out of here!"

"But Kakashi-sensei!" she protested.

"I don't want you two to have to see this," Kakashi finalized. "Get out of here, NOW!"

"I—"

"The kind of poison kunai you'd have learned to make from Shizune won't kill Sasuke. Orochimaru would've made sure he'd be immune to it," Kakashi added. "Besides, you've seen that you can't handle this."

As they spoke, Sasuke charged the chidori in his left hand.

"Kakashi-sensei, are you…?" Naruto began, faltered, and then spoke again. "Are you going to kill Sasuke?"

"Leave!" he said again. His patience waned.

But, of course, Naruto didn't listen, and, still exhausted from the mangekyou, one of Naruto's clones grabbed Kakashi from behind while the original and another clone spun chakra for a rasengan.

"You've left him vulnerable!" Sasuke yelled as he attacked. "I won't hesitate for a second!"

The two boys ran toward each other, attacks about to clash.

"Naruto, wait!" Kakashi yelled.

"Naruto!" Sakura this time.

He didn't listen. The attacks clashed.

"Chidori!"

"Rasengan!"

The force practically blew a hole in the water, knocking back enemy and friend alike.

Somehow neither of Naruto's clones dissipated. In the least, the one holding Kakashi released its grip, allowing the copy ninja to catch the original Naruto to break his fall.

Sasuke, too, had a fellow body to break his fall, but it wasn't Kakashi or even Sakura.

It was a White Zetsu.

"Ack!"

"Gotcha!" Strange white matter bubbled on the water's surface, cushioning the Uchiha and preventing him from sinking. The strange pale creature stayed there, despite the Uchiha's glares, until Sasuke regained his balance enough to stand on the top of the water.

"You…" Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "When did you…?"

"I've been watching your back for quite a while now," the creature said. "Tobi ordered me to hang around and keep my presence hidden from you. We're in trouble no matter how you slice it."

The other half of Team Seven had already regrouped and stood together in a line, ready to continue the fight.

"I told you to get out of here, Naruto!" Kakashi snapped, turning back to the blonde.

But Naruto hadn't even heard him. His gaze lingered on Sasuke.

"Now, I'm certain," he said, gaining even Sasuke's attention.

"Certain of what?" Kakashi echoed. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Naruto didn't answer him immediately, because a new presence joined them. Tobi joined the fray through a spiral-like portal beside White Zetsu.

_Madara,_  Kakashi thought, seething.

"I thought I told you to go back and rest!" he snapped in Sasuke's direction. His one-eyed gaze rested briefly on Naruto.

Sasuke crouched on the water but didn't sink. White Zetsu and Madara stood to his left.

"When we do fight them," Madara continued, speaking to Sasuke, "I'll be in a more suitable place. For now, we retreat."

Sasuke didn't look happy about Madara's statement, and, frankly, neither was Kakashi. To be perfectly honest, it wasn't a bad idea. But, just when Kakashi thought he could relax, half a dozen more White Zetsu rose from the depths of the water, sending the copy ninja into a state of alarm.

"Let me handle them," one of them said. "We've gotta capture the nine-tails sometime, right?"

Even Sasuke looked surprised, whether he could see them clearly or not.

_First Madara and now Zetsu. I can't handle them both alone._ Kakashi grimaced beneath his mask.  _What do I do here?_

"No, Zetsu," Madara replied, and Kakashi felt something in him sigh with relief. "You're not meant to be a front-line fighter. The nine tails is too much. We'll leave that hunt to Sasuke. It should be entertaining. Plus," Madara added, "I'm worried about Kisame. Go check on him and rejoin with your black half on the way."

_Kisame?_  Hearing Itachi's former partner's name only served to worry him all the more.

"Aye-aye, sir!" White Zetsu said, almost teasingly.

"Naruto," Kakashi turned to the staggering blonde, who already knew what he was going to say.

"I know," he said, "but first there's something I need to say to Sasuke."

"Come on, Sasuke," Madara stooped to help the boy stand so that they could leave.

"Wait." Sasuke rose to his full height. Coal black orbs bore into cerulean blue.

"Sasuke, do you remember what you told me back in the Valley of the End? About top class ninja?"

Sasuke said nothing, but clearly, he remembered: that when two top-class ninja battle, they could read each other's mind the moment their fists met.

"Did you see what was in my heart?" Despite everything, Naruto smiled. "Did you see how I really feel? One direct clash later, I understand a lot more. We've both become top class ninjas, Sasuke. So tell me…" he trailed off and pointed to his heart with his right thumb. "Did you see what was in my heart? How I really feel?"

Sasuke's expression ever-so-slightly softened, and Naruto continued.

"Did you see what will happen? If we fight…" he trailed off. Both Kakashi, with his single eye showing, and Sakura stared in anticipation, waiting for his answer. "We're both gonna die."

By now, Sasuke's expression hardened again.

"Our battle will be inevitable if you really do attack the Leaf. So keep your hatred, let it fester, and hit me with it full force. I'm the only one who can bear the full brunt of your hate! It's my job, no one else's! I'll bear the burden of your hatred, and we'll die together!"

Most everyone appeared shocked, even Madara, but Sasuke was just angry.

"What the fuck is wrong with you? Why do you care about me so much?!" he demanded.

"Because I'm your friend," Naruto stated simply, and all Sasuke could do was stare with half-blind eyes. "Sasuke, we'll never be able to understand each other through words alone. I knew that from the moment I met you."

He threw out his left fist for emphasis, as if he were throwing a punch. "The only way you and I can communicate properly is with our fists. Remember what I said: we're top-class ninjas now!"

"I haven't given up!" he declared. "However, I'm done ranting at you. Hell, I can barely string a sentence together. I shouldn't be lecturing anyone! Heh." Naruto ran a hand through his spiky blonde hair, as if he were just realizing something. "If we really do take this all the way to the end and we both die, we won't be Uchihas, jichuurikis, or anything. They'll be no more burdens to bear. We'll come to understand one another in the next world."

Sakura teared up beside them, but Kakashi could clearly see it had no effect on emotionally moving Sasuke.

"I will never change!" the Uchiha declared. "I don't want us to understand one another! And I'm not gonna die. You will!"

By now, Kakashi had grown sick enough of both of them.

"Enough, Naruto! I'll handle Sasuke," Kakashi cut in. "You still possess the dream of becoming hokage. Sasuke may have fallen, but don't let him drag you down, too—"

"How can I call myself hokage if I can't even save one friend?" Naruto interrupted. Kakashi thought back to the Third. He hadn't been able to save Orochimaru, and he'd still been a fantastic leader. Nonetheless, Naruto declared with serious eyes, "The only person Sasuke will be fighting is me!"

All Kakashi could do was sigh. When would Naruto grow up and realize life didn't work out the way anyone wanted it to, especially in the ninja world. The Third had known that, Itachi had known that—even Sasuke had learned that by now, despite his twisted spin on the life lesson.

Sasuke's usual grimace transformed into twisted smirk. "Have it your way. I'll kill you first."

"Heh… you have yet to accept me as an equal!" Naruto said.

Kakashi glanced back and forth between the longtime rivals, somehow reminded of himself and Obito. Naruto wasn't going to back down. As much as Kakashi resented his decision, the boy was old enough to decide what he wanted to do with his life.

Both of them were. So, he capitulated.

"Sasuke is all yours, Naruto," he finally said.

_However…_  he turned his gaze to the orange masked man.  _The least I can do is help._

"Sakura, take care of my body, okay?" he said, and, before she could give him a clear answer, Kakashi activated his mangekyou.

_I'm taking out Madara before this goes any further!_

"Kamui—" Kakashi began, prepared for the strain on his body, but it never came.

"Don't bother, Kakashi," the orange-masked man interrupted, holding out his hand to stop him and somehow his jutsu, as well. "Techniques like that have no effect on me." The copy ninja only became all the more confused.

"Let's go, Sasuke," Madara said, and the last thing Kakashi remembered hearing was Sasuke's voice.

"Madara," the boy began, staring blankly ahead. "You and I need to talk."

With that, the two Uchihas disappeared into the spiraling portal along with all of the White Zetsus.

"I'm ready when you are, Sasuke," Naruto declared, almost to himself.

With everyone gone, at least for now, they could relax. Kakashi closed his sharingan and reopened his natural eye.

"Thank you for everything, Naruto," Sakura said, walking up to the contemplative blonde.

But, unlike what Kakashi had initially thought, Naruto's silence was not contemplative. His first hint occurred when Naruto's step began to wobble ever-so-slightly, and then he foamed at the mouth and began sinking into the water.

"Wha—" Kakashi verbally stumbled, but immediately realized what was going on.

Sakura yelped in surprise. A look of horror engrossed her pale features. Thankfully, Kakashi managed to catch the jinchuriki before he completely sank into the water.

"It's the cut on his cheek," Kakashi explained. His tone became urgent. "Quick, Sakura, get the antidote!"

"T-Then Sasuke-kun used the kunai I poisoned!" she realized, still not acting as quickly as he'd like her to.

"Yeah, that's what I was getting at." While Sakura scrambled to retrieve said antidote, Kakashi sweat dropped.

When she finally retrieved the potion and Kakashi surrendered the blonde's nearly unconscious form to her, Naruto almost immediately sobed. When he recovered enough to stand, Kakashi reminded them it was time to go and also another issue they had yet to deal with: the girl Sasuke had tried to get Sakura to kill.

She was right where Sakura had left her on the bridge, near that oddly-placed tree. She didn't even protest when Kakashi slumped her onto his back.

"We're taking you to the leaf village, so don't try anything," he told her.

"Why would I even bother with that now?" she muttered, her tone defeated. At the moment, Kakashi knew she could barely move her limbs. Meanwhile, with Naruto and Sakura…

"Ugh, I feel like I'm dying," Naruto complained, gripping his stomach. In the least, he wasn't puking.

"Y-you gonna be okay?" Sakura stuttered, clearly feeling guilty.

But somehow, for the time being, Kakashi knew they would be.

-

"So," Tobi began, now back at his closest hideout with the young Uchiha, "what's on your mind?"

"I want Itachi's eyes." Tobi was surprised, but only for a moment.

"I knew you'd warm up to the idea eventually," he sneered, but the attitude was a front.

_Shit. If only Zetsu hadn't been so soft as to let Akira get away with Itachi's body._  Honestly, the most Obito could do right now was give Sasuke the eyes of the closest relative he had in stock. Danzou hadn't been the only one to harvest Uchiha organs that night. In theory, it should work. For the sake of everything, it had to.

"You've been much too quick to bring out Susanoo. I could tell your vision has been getting blurry. Good timing, huh?"

"I want that transplanted ASAP." Sasuke completely ignored anything beyond "Itachi's eyes." What a brat.

"Still, this is kind of sudden," Tobi further prodded. "What changed your mind?"

"I want to destroy Naruto with my full powers," Sasuke stated, gripping the left side of his face which, no doubt, was giving him a splitting headache. Tobi didn't have to see chakras to know that. "That's the only way to reject everything he stands for. Nothing more, nothing less."

Especially after Tobi's last encounter with Kakashi and feeling the rage of losing Rin all over again, Tobi knew Sasuke was lying. Of course there was more to this than what he said.

Tobi led Sasuke to the same pseudo-medical facility where he had examined Danzou's corpse earlier that day to find Shisui's eye had been destroyed in a last ditch effort to kill both him and Sasuke. He had since cleaned up from that disaster and, thinking ahead that Sasuke may inquire about transplanting his brother's eyes, had even prepared for such a situation.

He anesthetized Sasuke without a problem, which didn't take much considering his exhaustion from the previous fights. After Tobi prepped for surgery, which went over without a hitch, Sasuke awoke within the hour.

"You'll need some time to recuperate," Tobi told the boy, who sat up almost immediately, despite Tobi's instruction to do otherwise. "It'll be a while before you get accustomed to using the mangekyou with your new eyes." In the least, he was blindfolded, so he couldn't move around. If he tried, Tobi would just drug him again.

But, even with the anesthesia wearing off and all the pain of his previous fights, Sasuke said, "No." Tobi waited for the rest of his answer. "It's working," Sauke elaborated, his lips forming into a twisted smile. "Itachi's power is flowing into me! I can feel myself getting stronger!"

Tobi breathed a mental sigh of relief.

_Here's to psychosomatic effects…_

-

Akira shifted uncomfortably as she and Shizune sat by the hokage's bedside, this time on actual chairs. Since Sakura and her temporary team had left, the unconscious hokage had been moved to an actual medical facility that was a building—albeit a temporary wooden residence thanks to Yamato and Team Seven's carpenter friends—rather than a full blown hospital. Still, there were more healers here. More than just her and Shizune.

It was sad to say, but the most anyone could do was wait. The other medics had performed a slew of different tests, trying to figure out a way to help the hokage. Still, the most any results came to were "inconclusive" and "we're just going to have to wait for her to pull through."

So, Akira sat there, observing the hokage's chakra.

Even with all the medical professionals in the room, she was the only one who possessed the byakugan. She hadn't used it at every moment, but Akira made sure to check on the hokage's vitals every half hour or so, so as not to exhaust her own chakras.

The Hyuuga girl had nearly dozed off before once again sobering up in time for Tsunade's seemingly useless checkup. But this time, Akira sobered up even more.

"Shizune!" The dark-haired woman immediately straightened in her seat at the sound of Akira's voice. "Tsunade's vitals! They've shifted!"

Shizune moved, more quickly than Akira could at present, and before Akira could so much as blink, Shizune was at the blonde woman's side listening to her heartbeat. Those who didn't understand the situation muttered among themselves. Even the guards standing outside the door came in to investigate the source of the commotion.

"What is it?" one of the guards said, aggressively sliding open the wooden blockade.

Not having heard Akira's explanation, another guard inquired worriedly, "Shizune, is she—?"

"Quiet!" Shizune snapped. She returned her ear to the hokage's heartbeat, and, after a few seconds, she looked up again, her eyes expectant. Before her hands could light up with chakra, it happened.

Tsunade's eyes opened.

-

"Even Danzou's gone," Homura lamented as Kakashi delivered the news. "One of our best, lost forever."

All of the leaders, remaining elders, and six other political officials sat around the table of this particular meeting room, which resided on the second floor of the conveniently-placed building. Even Pein hadn't managed to destroy it.

An empty seat resided between Homura and Koharu, where Danzou used to sit. Although Kakashi couldn't disagree with the "best" part, he had to admit, he wasn't so sure the man would be terribly missed.

"We'll need to hold a meeting to appoint a new hokage immediately," Koharu cut in.

"We can't be part of the joint force without a leader," Homura seconded.

"There's simply no choice," Koharu acquiesced with a sigh and turned her gaze to the copy ninja. "We'll support you as our choice for hokage. The Sand would prefer you, as well."

Murmurs of agreement sounded around the table.

Although he certainly didn't feel like it, Kakashi said, "I'm ready."

"Hatake Kakashi," the highest ranking councilman, the feudal lord with the fanlike contraption on his head bearing the symbol for fire, began, "I officially pronounce you as—"

"WAIT!" All eyes turned to the entrance of the room, where a jounin Kakashi didn't recognize who possessed a rather identifiable scythe tattoo on right below his left eye stood, having slammed open the door. "Urgent news!" he said.

"What is it?" the official sitting across from Homura demanded. "The meeting is of the utmost importance!"

"So is my report, sir!" the jounin replied.

And, Kakashi had to admit, when it was revealed that Tsunade had woken up, he felt an undeniable wave of relief.

-

Multiple eyes around the room glazed over with tears as the blonde hokage blinked, her amber orbs readjusting to the light. Shizune sat beside the woman on the floor, her fists clenched as tears dripped onto her lap until she couldn't resist anymore—she jumped forward to the embrace the woman.

The medic behind Shizune was already crying. As was the one standing beside Akira. Even the Hyuuga girl felt her eyes glaze over a bit at the sight.

"Tsunade-saaama!" the woman sobbed, and by now the dazed hoakge sat up slightly. One of the guards had long since fled the room to deliver the message to the village council.

"Thank Kami!" the medic standing behind her was already wiping his eyes, and Akira's lips twisted into a smile. Even Tonton awoke in a corner away from her usual owner's lap due to Shizune's constant fidgeting.

Within minutes, the hokage was sitting up and immediately asked for food to restore her chakra. Her wish was granted, and, faster than Akira thought humanly possible after a village-wide disaster, the medics obtained a small table and bowl after bowl of different types of nourishment for the hokage to consume.

_How did that all get here so fast?_  Akira wondered.

A mere twenty minutes in, there were more empty bowls and plates than Akira had for a meal with three people, let alone one.

"Keep it coming!" Tsunade called.

"Tsunade-sama, please slow down!" Shizune interjected. Nonetheless, she did so with a smile. By now, Tonton lay happily nestled back in her owner's arms.

"My chakras still haven't recovered!" Tsunade argued. "I need more food or my technique will wear off and I'll be an old hag again!"

_She didn't look that bad as an "old hag."_ Akira thought, but knew better than to say aloud.

"There isn't a single crumb left in the hokage's office," Shizune informed, her smile apprehensive, which answered Akira's question as to where they'd obtained all these massive meals. "We'll have more soon, but, in the meantime, take a break!"

Tsunade, still chewing the remnants from her last dish, did not look amused, and began eyeing the pig in Shizune's arms a little too closely. So much so that even Tonton seemed to catch on and shift uncomfortably.

Shizune's smile shifted to a frown as she jerked her center line, and with that the pig, away from Tsunade's gaze.

"Get ahold of yourself! You cannot eat her!" she snapped.

Akira couldn't help but laugh, thankful they were able to be so light-hearted despite the situation. Her outburst went unnoticed as another presence joined the room: Hatake Kakashi.

"I'm glad you seem to have recovered," he said, his gaze on Tsunade. Akira shot him a sideways glance but, at least for now, he wasn't looking at her.

"Huh?" Shizune failed to notice the copy nin immediately.

While Tonton squealed, Tsunade motioned with her hands to usher the other medics out of the room. But, just as Akira began to rise from her seat to follow them, Tsunade halted.

"Akira, you may stay," the hokage said, and, although Shizune looked surprised, Kakashi didn't. With only the four of them left in the room, Kakashi commenced his story to bring them up to speed.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Tsunade demanded, and Kakashi recapped.

"I was about one second away from becoming the sixth hokage," Kakashi explained, "and honestly, I don't think I'm suited for the position. In situations like this, your presence will be a lot more effective than mine."

He had a point, Akira had to admit. Tsunade's aggressive personality and go-getter tendencies were highly effective in times of conflict, although she disagreed with Kakashi's statement about him not being suited for the position. Although she could understand why he was relieved, he was a strong and trustworthy ninja. What village wouldn't want that for its leader?

_I was right in choosing him to go to with my story,_  Akira thought. Nonetheless, she was glad Tsunade had woken up. Now she had two powerful allies and not just one.

Kakashi went on to explain about the situation at the kage summit, the details of what happened with Sasuke, and, on a far more positive note, the union of the five nations against Madara at his declaration of war.

_There's still a war,_  Akira thought bitterly. Itachi's sacrifice had certainly delayed it, but it had happened anyway thanks to Madara and Itachi's stupid brother.

In the least, Danzou was dead. Although the way Sasuke and Madara had disposed of him was anything but legal, she and the twins were safe. Danzou's underlings were unlikely to act without his orders, and, judging by the way Tsunade glanced at her when Kakashi informed them of the elder's demise, she felt the same way.

"I'm surprised about the joint forced," Tsunade remarked. "I can't believe the raikage and tsuchikage agreed to cooperate." Although Akira didn't know them, she could tell by Tsunade's tone that there had been some serious past conflict.

"It's just another indicator of how serious this is," Kakashi agreed, surprisingly nonchalant with his hands in his pockets.

"So Uchiha Madara is really alive then?"

"I don't have any solid proof," Kakashi admitted, "but considering his plan, I doubt it could be anyone else."

"Another war…" Tsunade trailed off. She used the back of her hand to wipe her mouth, where specks of rice stuck to the area from previous meals. "The Uchiha's fate now torments us all."

Akira had to admit, she couldn't agree more.

The hokage turned back to Kakashi, a far more serious expression on her now rice-free face. "Call a planning session as soon as I'm finished! We have to prepare for war!"

Itachi's nightmare had become a reality.

-

_Zuzuzuzuzu_

"Zetsu," Tobi greeted, not bothering to turn around from his work as the plant-like man's form melded with ground outside the hideout up to the creature's waist. "I see you and your other half have reattached."

"Yes," Black Zetsu confirmed. Both sides grinned.

"And? Your report?"

"Kisame pulled it off. The eight tails is in possession of Samehada and everyone believes Kisame to be dead while he hides in wait, bonded with the sword. Even the raikage believed my clone of Kisame's corpse was the real thing. The whole thing went off without a hitch."

"Excellent!" For once, something had gone according to plan. "This should lead us to capturing both jinchurikis."

"Would you like me to continue keeping an eye on him, just in case?"

"Not your black half. Just send some of your white clones. They should be enough in case the plot thickens."

"Yes, Madara. Anything else?"

The Uchiha paused, thinking for a moment. "For once," he began, his tone thoughtful. "That'll be all for now."


	44. Chapter 44

Tobi headed back into his hideout, using the same arched entrance he and Sasuke had utilized only a few days ago. With Zetsu out on another scouting mission, he was alone, but fate had to have one more interruption for him.

"I would come greet you, 'Tobi,'" a familiar voice slithered, "but it appears you go by 'Madara' these days, don't you?"

Tobi looked up to see Kabuto standing above the hideout's archway, wearing a black cloak with red snake-like eyes adorning the hood. The design reminded Tobi of Akatsuki clouds. What exactly was these people's obsession with red and black?

"I'm impressed you even found me," Tobi replied.

Not much remained of Kabuto's original vessel. A white serpent protruded from the back of his cloak, and, in turn, his skin scaled like a snake's. Both his eyes slanted in an eerily similar way to the late Orochimaru's. Still, he had managed to locate the Akatsuki's hideout, and that was more than anyone in Konoha could claim.

"Remember, I served as a spy in numerous countries and spent some time working for Akatsuki myself," Kabuto reminded. His voice sounding more snake-like than Tobi remembered, too. "Don't underestimate what I might know."

"Yes, you were one of Sasori's spies," he said, and then added in a lower, more annoyed tone, "and a traitor to Akatsuki."

Rather than verbally retorting, Kabuto jumped to the ground from his perch and, for a moment, Obito thought he may attack. But then Kabuto formed a hand sign and five large wooden boxes appeared from the ground between them, almost like—no, they  _were_  coffins.

"This can't be!" Tobi breathed, maintaining his defensive stance. Inside were five people Tobi had been positive he'd never see again: Nagato, Kakuzu, Deidara, Sasori, and Itachi.

"Impure world resurrection technique—Edo Tensei!"

"Not quite activated yet," Kabuto admitted, "but I have prepared their forms. A technique only the second hokage and Orochumaru knew how to use. With these men, I have surpassed its previous users. This is a performance just for you," Kabuto pointed out, "to earn your trust in my power. I didn't come here to fight you."

"Then why?" Tobi inquired, honestly curious. By now, he'd abandoned the defensive stance.

"I came here to join forces," Kabuto announced, grinning unctuously much like the snake he used to serve.

"You want to join forces?" Tobi echoed, his only visible eye narrowing. "What's in it for me?"

"You're planning to start your war very soon. I can bolster your fighting power with Itachi, Sasori, Deidara, Kakuzu, and Nagato. Quite a lineup of powerful men, and they're not even the full set of my pawns."

Now, Tobi's interest was piqued.

"What do you want in returned?" he questioned.

"Uchiha Sasuke," Kabuto replied, and it took every ounce of control Tobi had not to roll his eyes.

"What're you trying to accomplish?" That, in the least, may shed some light on the situation.

"Nothing in particular," Kabuto stated, holding out both hands in a pacifistic pose, much like Tobi used to do. "My interests lie solely with learning the pure, unaltered truth about ninjutsu." As if for emphasis, the snake behind him stuck out its tongue. "I need Sasuke-kun to fully answer my questions. A young, fragile, living Uchiha."

"What if I say no?"

Kabuto clapped his hands to summon a sixth coffin. Tobi watched with interest until the lid fell off. His expression contorted to a look of horror.

"Th-that's—" he stuttered.

"Did you really think I'd extend my hand to you without a backup plan?" Kabuto chuckled. "You  _cannot_ refuse me!"

"You madman!" And Tobi meant it, too. "How did you do this?!"

"Oh, you know…" Kabuto trailed off mysteriously. For Tobi, it was infuriating, and he didn't anger easily. "Anyway, relax. I haven't told a soul."

In the coffin was Uchiha Madara—the  _real_  Uchiha Madara. If word of this got out, he'd be ruined.  _Everything_ would be ruined. Unable to contain himself, Obito fell to his number one defense mechanism: he laughed.

Kabuto looked confused.

"What's so funny?"

"Yakushi Kabuto," Tobi began, his tone impressed, "I never imagined you had such potential. Any conflict with you would only serve to weaken my warfighting capabilities, and to set this up just to prepare for meeting me…" Tobi trailed off, reveling in the genius of the man's actions. "You are a shrewd,  _shrewd_  man."

"And?" Kabuto prodded, clearly enjoying the praise, but also desiring an answer.

"I accept you offer," Tobi stated, "on  _one_  condition. We wait until after the war is over before I hand over Sasuke. Until then, I won't let you anywhere near him. I'll be watching him day and night."

"I knew you were reasonable." Kabuto smirked. "Uchiha Madara, you truly are in your own league."

That was a dig and Tobi knew it. "Wise guy. I'll reformulate my plan to account for your battle power. Come on." Tobi motioned for both of them to enter the hideout.

At this, Kabuto smiled wickedly as he formed another hand sign. All six coffins returned to their original place beneath the ground, not to be disturbed until much, much later.

-

Mitarashi Anko sighed to herself as she knelt on the ground of the wasteland between the villages of Taki and Oto.

After Yamato and Sai had left to go help Naruto, she'd been forced to find a new team to help her track Kabuto. In the least, she had a Hyuuga now, which gave her a tactical advantage. Nonetheless, Anko had to admit she missed Yamato's copy of the first's technique and Sai's scouting prowess.

"Kabuto's becoming more and more like Orochimaru," she remarked as one of the jounin examined another set of bodies. These unfortunate tragedies were helping lead them to Kabuto like extremely morbid breadcrumbs. The duo's corpses, both bearing leaf hitiate, were covered in odd puncture wounds around their neck area.

Their exact cause of death had yet to be discovered without a proper autopsy, and unfortunately, Konoha hadn't the resources to grant her an extra medical nin.

"But why is he leaving evidence behind?" the jounin kneeling beside her questioned, examining said marks on one of the corpse's neck.

"Could he be doing it on purpose?" the Hyuuga, who knelt on her other side, inquired.

"I'm sure he's taken up Orochimaru's mantle," Anko speculated. "But will he go after the Leaf or Akatsuki?"

Orochimaru's desire had been the Leaf, definitely.

The four of them walked a bit further in the parched wasteland covered in bones of odd-looking creatures and humans who came all this way only to die. The place was just a limbo area between villages. It reeked of death—even the trees were mostly dead, and those that weren't barely hung onto life.

"Leaving corpses all the way out here," one of the jounin's remarked grimly as they observed yet another one with the same neck markings. "Judging from the steady trail of bodies, it's clear something big is up ahead."

"You think it's a trap?" the other jounin inquired.

"What's the plan?" The other turned to her.

"Tokuma!" In the least, she remembered the Hyuuga's name. "Byakugan, scan, two o'clock!"

"Yes, ma'am!" His kekki genkai activated and, judging by his expression, Tokuma did not like what he saw.

"Captain Mitarashi," he began, "it's—" but trailed off.

"What do you see?" she demanded.

"It's not just Kabuto! It's the masked man from Akatsuki! They're walking down a path to an underground passageway."

"WHAT?!" She hadn't been expecting that.

"That's the guy who calls himself 'Madara!'" one of the jounin said, his voice panicked.

"What's Kabuto doing with him?" the other concurred. "Are they working together?!"

Rather than reacting like the two jounin, Anko became contemplative and brushed a finger across her chin in a thinking pose.

"Maybe Kabuto led us this way on purpose," Anko mused, "to expose Madara's hideout?"

"But why would he do that if they're on the same side?" the first jounin to panic replied, albeit it much more calmly than his previous sentence.

"Dunno," Anko admitted, "but we need to inform the village right away!"

-

Three days. It had been three days since the initial attack on Konoha and the uniting of the five nations against Uchiha Madara. Everything felt surreal to Tsunade as the leaders and their bodyguards gathered around one table. All of them were here, which made six of them, including the Iron Daimyo, who would once again be serving as the mediator.

"You're all early," the raikage commented, looking more collected than Tsunade had ever seen in her life. She also noted that his left forearm was missing. A gift from Sasuke, Kakashi had told her.

"The situation demands haste, after all," Gaara said.

"But Tsunade-hime, have you recovered?" the tsuchikage inquired. A sweet gesture, had his tone not been patronizing.

"I don't want to hear it from you, old man!" she retorted. "Enough of your double standards!"

"Setting the matter of Danzou aside," Mei, the mizukage, spoke up, "I find it reassuring that Tsunade-sama has returned to her seat as hokage." Quite a complement, coming from her.

"Let us leave the greetings there," the Iron Daimiyo spoke up, "and begin the meeting forthwith."

The room went silent. He continued.

"First, we must address the matter of the Kyuubi and the Hachibi jincuuriki, and also any information regarding the enemy's headquarters, battle strength, et cetera."

"Our people are investigating a location which appears to be an enemy base," Tsunade informed, recalling Anko's latest report. "It may be a trap, but we have no choice but to gather more intel."

"We've also assembled a recon team, and they're currently gathering intelligence as well," the raikage added. "We need to quickly compare the intel gathered by each of the hidden villages."

"That being the case, we should unify our intelligence gathering corps into a separate organization," Mei pointed out.

"That's all fine!" Onoki chimed in, sounding annoyed. "But where will we hide the jinchuuriki?"

"Hide?" Tsunade didn't bother to conceal her surprise.

"What?!" For once, the raikage shared her sentiments.

"Naruto and B are major assessments to our combat strength!" Tsunade burst. "How can we just hide them away?!"

"That's what I thought," Onoki began, "but those two are the enemy's targets in this war. Considering the possibilities, we can't send them to the front. We agreed upon that in the last meeting!"

"The enemy is Uchiha Madara!" Tsunade retorted. "If we lose our shot at victory because we're unwilling to use our strength, we won't get a second chance! We need to strike hard will our full—"

"This is a war to protect these two," Gaara interrupted, but not rudely. "Hokage, you cannot make unilateral demands. We'll decide this by majority rule."

But, considering how much younger than her he was, she took it as an insult.

"You little punk!" Tsunade snapped. "Naruto is—"

And then he interrupted her again.

"If it's Naruto you want to talk about, I know him very well," Gaara stated, his hands folded together near his mouth on top of the table's surface. His eyes turned even more serious. "He'll do anything for the sake of his comrades. That's precisely the problem."

Tsunade quieted. Admittedly, the boy did have a point.

"Before we even consider military strength," Mifune interjected, "disunity among the five kages will preclude victory."

Shikaku, who stood behind her, currently serving as one of her bodyguards, added his own thoughts. "I also agree with them," Shikamaru's father said, "Tsunade-sama."

"Enough!" the hokage snapped, and then sighed, knowing he was right.

"Looks like the impudent slug princess is in good health after all!" Onoki remarked. "That was some energetic testimony!"

"Let's decide where to hide the Hachibi and Kyuubi," the raikage suggested. "No objections, right hokage?" he turned to her.

"All right," Tsunade capitulated. "Let's move on already!"

"Hmf. The location of the refuge has been decided!" he stated. "It's a place I've kept in reserve. It's only appropriate that it be Kumogakure, which hasn't given rise to any Akatsuki members! It's an isolated island where B and I used to train together intensely."

As he explained more, even Tsunade couldn't find it in her heart to disagree with him. As much as she resented his youth, Gaara was right. It would be wise to keep Naruto out of the action as much as possible. The boy did not need to know that half of this entire war had begun because they were trying to protect him.

-

"So remind me again why Kakashi-sensei isn't coming with us?" Naruto inquired, glancing back and forth between his sensei and the obviously pregnant Hyuuga girl standing beside him.

"Because I have other duties here, Naruto," Kakashi said, understandably exasperated considering the number of times he'd already said this. "Tsunade commanded for you and Yamato to go to Kumo with the others to train with Killer B to better control your abilities."

Akira had to admit, it was the perfect cover story. Tsunade had been kind enough to keep Shizune and her in the loop about what had happened at the last kage summit meeting, including how Naruto absolutely could not know the truth and why.

In the least, with Danzou dead, Akira had been able to spend a bit of time with Eri and Kaname.

Her friends were currently bunking with Makoto and his family until their demolished apartment could be rebuilt. It had been nice to see them. Somehow, everyone was okay.

She hadn't been able to stay long, and she hadn't been able to tell them very much, either. Taisou had even come by, disallowing her from talking about Itachi at all. Admittedly though, she'd been glad to see her uncle alive and well.

Tsunade had wanted to keep her under observation as much as possible, not willing to risk the notion that Tobi may attempt to kill her, which the hokage regularly stressed was a high possibility, especially after her earlier encounter with Kisame.

It took Naruto of all people to bring Akira back to the current reality.

"Ah, but why does fuzzy eyebrow's sensei have to come with us instead?" he demanded, pointing an accusing finger at Gai and inadvertently another jounin with sunglasses and spiky dark hair. Akira had only just learned his name was Aoba.

Gai didn't comment or even look offended, but then Yamato spoke up.

"Because you need all the protection you can get, Naruto, especially with how hard Madara is looking for you. Besides," Yamato placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, "I'll still be there with you."

"Yeah, but you're not Kakashi-sensei!"

The wood user's expression fell at the blonde's comment, almost comically, but Akira was quick to remedy the situation.

"Think of it as a vacation, Naruto-kun!" she spoke up, and the blonde looked up to meet her lavender gaze. "You can go off and get a whole lot stronger and then come back and show Kakashi-sensei how far you've come!"

Naruto thought for a moment. Then his expression brightened and he said, "Okay! That's sounds like a great idea!"

_Such a simple mind, isn't he?_ It was surprising for such a powerful kid.

"Let's go, Naruto!" Aoba encouraged.

Gai shot his rival a fair well thumbs and babbled some encouraging nice guy speech most everyone tuned out. Thankfully, it was short. With that, the four of them were off, leaving Kakashi and Akira alone. Neither of them spoke until the team's figures faded well into the distance.

"There they go," Akira said, her tone wistful. She turned to look at the copy ninja. "Where are you headed?"

He offered her a shrug, hands in his pockets.

"Back to the hokage's office for further orders. Same as you, I'd imagine."

"Aa."

Both of them went silent.

'How are you taking all this?" Kakashi finally asked, an alarmingly personal question, but in a kind tone.

Akira smiled softly. "Same as you, I'd imagine, having to fight your former student."

"It's not up to us, anymore," Kakashi sighed, running a fingerless gloved hand through wild silver hair. "All we can do now is wait and follow orders."

"Yeah. I hate it."

Even with his mask, Akira could tell Kakashi smiled. They went silent again, but only for a moment.

"Back to Tsunade's?" Kakashi said.

"Back to Tsunade's," Akira agreed.

_

It felt odd, Tobi had to admit, being back in Amegakure. It was raining, like it usually was, and the Uchiha's hair and cloak were soaked and stuck uncomfortably close to his body. But he couldn't leave just yet. He had one more loose end to tie up before he could fully focus on Konoha.

"I see you have no intention of telling me where you hid Nagato."

Heavily shadowed eyes, clearly done with waterproof makeup, looked back at him through an organized mess of blue hair and pale skin: Konan. She even wore her Akatsuki uniform.

"I knew you'd come and find me eventually," she said, her tone even. "I've been waiting for my chance to destroy you."

"Don't expect me to go easy on you just because you're a former member."

They stared at each other across from floating pieces of what used to be a metal building, floating aimlessly in one of Ame's overflowing rivers.

"One question," Tobi added, and she just kept looking at him blankly, but didn't attack. "What was it that convinced the two of you to betray me?"

She didn't reply, but Tobi was almost positive he knew anyway.

"Do you really believe that Uzumaki Naruto is that special?"

"He is light personified," Konan stated, reaching out her hand, which was beginning to flake into strips of paper, indicating an upcoming attack. "That's why everyone he meets carries the flower called 'hope.'"

"Heh. You bare you fangs at me, but you still wear that cloak." Even so, he didn't feel threatened. "Perhaps you miss Akatsuki?"

By now, sections of her uniform had begun to peel.

"'Akatsuki' was founded by Yahiko," Konan retorted, although with little vocal emotion. "The red clouds on these cloaks are a symbol of the wars that rained blood down on the Hidden Rain Village!"

"You're just riding on Akatsuki's coattails," Tobi disagreed.  _When is she going to stop talking and actually attack me?_  "These cloaks represent justice to us. They don't belong to you."

"The rinnegan belonged to Nagato, a hidden rain village ninja. His eyes don't belong to you either. His eyes are our country's treasure!"

With her body wholly engulfed in the paper jutsu, she attacked him with a barrage of paper shuriken.

"Wrong on both accounts, my dears," Tobi corrected. The attacks phased through him effortlessly. "I may as well enlighten you, since you're about to die."

She halted the barrage, but only for a moment.

"I was the one who spurred Yahiko to form Akatsuki," Tobi revealed. Konan's eyes widened even so slightly. "I was also the one who gave Nagato the rinnegan."

"So really," Tobi continued, raising both hands as if he were giving a simplistic speech, "I'm only taking back what was mine to begin with. Back then, you were just a foolish girl who knew nothing, but now you're a foolish little girl who knows where Nagato's rinnegan is hidden."

Frankly, she did look like a little girl with the lost expression currently worn on her face.

"All I need to do now is capture you," Tobi continued. "Don't underestimate the eye powers of an Uchiha, child!" He'd already lost Shisui's eye to Danzou. He was not about to lose the rinnegan, too.

Her angel wings had formed, which resulted in the lower half of her body disappearing. From there, tons of tiny paper squares spread throughout the air, headed in his direction. None of them tried to cut him, but Tobi knew what she was trying to do.

_She's trying to surround me so I can't get away when I solidify,_  he realized.  _All right, you've obviously got some kind of plan. Let's see what it is._

She fruitlessly attempted to obscure her form amid the mass of deadly scraps, but his sharignan could see her. He could see her so easily.

"Now!" Tobi said aloud, and by now she was practically right in front of him as he activated his space-time ninjutsu. "You're finished!"

But, seconds after saying his, Obito noticed something especially odd about all these scraps of paper being sucked into his portal: they were exploding tags.

"I'll drag you down to the next world with me!" Konan declared, her face materializing inches away from his. The explosion detonated. Scraps of paper and pieces of cloth flew in all directions into the swelling water. By the time everything cleared, two figures could be seen, but one of them was missing an arm and half his mask had been blown off.

"I took you lightly," the Uchiha seethed. "You were one of the original members of Akatsuki, after all."

Konan rematerialized her head and torso, except this time, further away. She panted, slightly exhausted from the attack.

"You tried to self-destruct and kill us both the moment I tried to absorb you." Tobi glared at the woman. "I was faster than you. I swallowed up the explosion," he informed, and then added, "Most of it, anyway." Her heavily shadowed amber eyes glared at him, but not in the right way for him to capture her in a genjutsu. That, at least, she knew better than to do.

"I saved your life, too!" he called up at her. "I believe a 'thank you' is in order!"

She said nothing, likely planning her next attack.

"Are you done with you little master plan now?" He knew she wasn't, but the least he could do was attempt to discourage her further. But then, she surprised him.

"Question, Madara," she said.

"What?"

"Do you understand  _why_  we betrayed you?"

"Not a clue," Tobi shrugged nonchalantly. "That's your problem." With the half of his mask that was broken, the rain was seeping onto his skin in the most unpleasant of ways. He was eager to get this over with.

Konan held out her left hand, which dispersed into what was most likely her next attack.

"Because you are darkness!" she yelled, the most emotion he'd ever heard from her voice. "A world without light where flowers can only with and die!" And then, Tobi had to admit, she did actually surprise them when the entire body of water around them became scraps of paper, and any shelte hadn't just turned to paper was not close by.

Piece after piece dug and stuck to his tattered uniform, each of which, Tobi noted, was an explosive tag.

Konan detonated the tags attached to him, and, when that didn't kill him, resumed talking.

"I wasn't just sitting idle by your side all that time," she declared, her left hand still outstretched. "I know exactly why your dimensional transfer failed."

Oh, did she now?

"Well, then, let's hear it."

"You have to solidify before you can absorb yourself, and you always take longer to absorb someone or something!"

"That might have been dangerous if I hadn't switched from trying to absorb the attack to slipping through the explosions!" Madara stated, loudly, but almost to himself. His sharigan eye was narrowed even more steeply at the paper kunoichi. He was going to have to go all out for this.

_She can use these explosive tags to attack any time she wants,_ he analyzed.  _I can't be reckless with using dimensional transfers._  It may have saved him once, but that was going to have to be it.

Then she added her most potent observation of all.

"And you can only remain intangible for five minutes at a time!"

Tobi didn't have the mask to hide the surprise on his face anymore. At this, Konan only looked more triumphant. Even more so, when he noted nearly every paper around him, not just the ones she'd stuck to him earlier, were detonatable.

_Almost all of these are explosive tags!_

"I've prepared all of these," Konan informed, her glare even darker. "All six hundred  _billion_  explosive tags to kill you! Enough for ten minutes of non-stop explosions!"

She'd really thought of everything, hadn't she? As much as Tobi didn't like it, he was going to have to use  _that._

Konan detonated the explosions and waited. It felt like an eternity, but finally they stopped. While she recuperated from chakra exhaustion, the ocean water returned slowly, but surely. Her paper angel technique had worn off by now.

"Madara… must be…." she panted, searching around for any sign of his demise, not that there should logically be anything left. He had to be, he had to be—

"Dead, right?" Tobi appeared behind her, and, before she could react, he stabbed her with a broken metal pole he'd found amid the rubble. With his right arm gone, Obito was forced to use his left hand. Nonetheless, even with his non-dominant side, it was enough.

"How…?" she breathed, still in shock and likely not feeling the pain of the wound quite yet. "You should… be… dead… I went over this plan… did countless simulations. It should've worked." Her world looked shattered. "It should've killed you."

Both of them stood there on the water. The rain continued to fall around them.

"Izanagi," Tobi stated simply, and, by now, both his sharigan eyes showed, a sight no one had seen in a very long time. Now, he was pissed. "The forbidden Uchiha technique with the power to connect illusion with reality at the cost of the user's sight." Sasuke had done it. Danzou had done it. Now, within these past few days, it was his turn. "It's a technique which can only be used by someone who possesses the power of the Uchiha  _and_ the Senju."

" _Both_  Uchiha and Senju?" Konan echoed. It was a wonder she could still talk, considering he'd just fucking  _stabbed_ her. "That's the power of the six paths! You don't have such power…"

"Heh-heh," Tobi chuckled. "You are a former ally. I suppose you've earned the right to know alittle about my techniques… and my history." And the fact she was going to die. That helped, too.

So he explained. About the sage, about the ability to turn imagination into reality with the yin and yang chakra of the ten tails using Izanagi. Understandably, she was only more shocked.

"What… the hell… are you?" she managed. He had yet to pull the metal pole from what seemed to be her upper torso. Somehow, it had missed her heart. The baggy cloak made it a bit difficult to aim properly.

"Legend has it that Harashima Senju defeated Uchiha Madara, but is that legend true?" Tobi spoke mysteriously. "The true winner is he who chose to focus on the future, and the real fight is about to begin." He began to channel his former teacher again. "I am Uchiha Madara, the man who gained access to Senju Harashima's powers! Two of the six paths are now one being!"

He chuckled again, and the most Konan could do was groan in pain. "Of course, there were those who couldn't control Hashirama's power and boasted only an incomplete form of Izanagi." Tobi thought back to Danzou and his failure to bond Hashirama's genes to his arm. In the end, that jutsu had cost the man his life.

Konan groaned, and this time separated herself from what he'd stabbed her with of her own volition. Admirable, but she bled like a stuck pig. The paper kunoichi dropped to her knees, clutching her injury.

"You'll be seeing Nagato soon enough," Tobi assured, enjoying the sight of her struggling. "When you get to the other side, you two can spend eternity regretting your decision to listen to Naruto's foolish babble." From there, his expression only darkened. "There  _is_  no peace! There can be  _no_ hope! Nagato only believed in Naruto to try and comfort his own pitiful existence."

But, as he spoke, the strangest of things happened. Possibly the strangest thing he'd seen in a very long time.

It stopped raining.

"Then endless storm over the hidden rain village..." Tobi couldn't help but be distracted. His gaze shifted upwards. "What the hell is going on?"

Taking advantage of his surprise, Konan regained her footing and somehow rose to her feet, arms above her head.

"Yahiko and Nagato's will hasn't vanished from this world!" she said defiantly. "I believe in Naruto, too! He…" she trailed off, the consequences of her injury clearly affecting her. Nonetheless, she persisted, and then performed possibly the most tacky, distasteful jutsu Tobi had ever seen, and he'd fought Gai for Kami's sake.

"He will become the bridge that will lead us to peace!" she declared, and in the background, as the sun began to emerge from the clouds. It reflected off the water, forming a rainbow that Konan mimicked with her paper jutsu. "And I will be a support, holding that bridge up! It doesn't matter if I'm scattered to the wind! I will stop y—"

Tobi's hand flew to her throat, and, at last, her monologue ceased.

"You called me the darkness, didn't you?" Tobi hissed, eye blazing coldly. "Then I will make you wilt." The sounds of her choking was much more pleasant to his ears than her previous speech. "I'll take your little rainbow bridge and plunge it into darkness! When my illusion ends, so will your life! But first, you  _will_ reveal where you hid the rinnegan!"

Chakra depleted and unable to resist any longer, Konan's eyes closed.

-

"Finally!" Tobi's crimson eyes rolled as sandaled feet padded into the flower-filled shrine Konan had prepared for her fallen teammates. He'd obtained this location and left the woman to bleed out or drown in the ocean. Either one would be a fitting end for the likes of her. She would be unconscious for it, which was more than anyone deserved after the betrayal she and Nagato had cost him.

"You are the third of the sixth paths," Tobi stated as he approached Yahiko's still form, marred with piercing after piercing. He turned to what was left of Nagato. "Look at you, you overexerted your powers so much that the Uzumaki clan's trademark red hair turned snow white."

The pale shade blended with the thousands of origami flowers Konan had prepared for her comrades' bodies. "Even in betrayal, you smirk mockingly at me."

The only revenge Tobi had for the man's actions was the fact he was about to steal his eyes and use them for war. That, in the least, was the last one-up he could give to this peace-mongering traitor with no vision.

He removed the man's eyes and closed his empty eyelids. But, before he could leave the bodies in peace as Konan desired and re-attend to his business, something interrupted him. Or rather, someone.

_Zuzuzuzuzuzu_

It was Zetsu.

"What are you doing here?" Madara glared at the man through what was now two eye holes in his broken mask.

_This had better be important._

"Sorry, Madara!" Black Zetsu said to him, "but this is urgent."

"Yes?"

"Kisame's in trouble. Which, involves some better news: I've found the location of both jinchuriki! They're on a floating island just outside of Kumo!"

_Well,_ Tobi thought, forming a hand sign whilst also mentally sighing.  _Looks like I'll have to change clothes on the way._  Lucky for him, he kept some supplies stored in one of his eye's dimensions.

Kabuto would have to wait to hear his status update, but the snake could certainly wait. Despite the leverage Kabuto had over him, he wasn't the one in charge.

Tobi teleported away, bringing Zetsu with him.

-

Kisame had to admit, this hadn't been his worst couple days, but it certainly hadn't been his best, either.

It wasn't that he minded being fused with Samehada. That wasn't so bad actually. Even listening to the Kyuubi's monologues hadn't been so bad, either. He'd been able to gain some valuable intel, even if he couldn't see everything clearly through the bandages around his weapon.

It was the raps, those god-awful raps, that the Hachibi spoke practically every second. Then the Kyuubi had felt the need to imitate them. Kisame almost gave up then and there, having to listen to that, but he'd persisted. However, now it looked like he was about to be revealed.

The Kyuubi had just mastered his synchronization with his tailed demon, which did not bode well for Kisame in his hiding place.

"Can you sense someone else's chakra?" the one named Yamato had inquired just after Naruto had activated his tailed form, revealing his true power. Kisame already knew by that point that he was in trouble.

"It's that thing!" Naruto said, likely pointing. "It's like… some kinda evil presence or something! It's not chakra!"

Well, "evil something"—that certainly described him.

_Impossible! Samehada and I have identical chakras! There's no way he can tell I'm here!_  But, somehow, he could.

Kisame acted before they could and jumped, sword and all, away from where they'd all been fascinated around the eight tail's admittedly muscular back.

_Apparently he can detect hatred and other negative emotions now,_  Kisame thought, glancing back at Naruto as his true form rematerialized up to his upper torso on the top of the weapon.

"Not even the most astute sensor-types are capable of that," Kisame remarked, spikes still protruding from his head and shoulders as his body reappeared. "Gaining control of the nine-tails has afforded you interesting powers."

Madara would certainly be interested to discover this new development. Not to mention everything else he'd just overheard about their military strength.

"You are that shark scumbag from Akatsuki!" Naruto realized, and now Kisame could see what he looked like, not just hear him. His entire body glowed yellow with powerful chakra. While his face and hitiate were visible, the only discernable markings left on the jinchuriki's body were black lines and some comma-like markings on his chest.

"What? We sliced this guy's head off back in the forest!" B said, still using that infuriating beat-like way of talking. "You tellin' me our tag attack actually missed?"

"I simply switched places while we were fighting in the water bubble," Kisame explained, grinning menacingly as he thought back to his previous fight with the eight tails and the raikage. It had been difficult to resist going full out at the time.

"Clones disappear when they're killed!" B protested. "Man, that doesn't even hold water! We had a dead body! Even after the slaughter, if I was someone in disguise, C would've sensed the difference. Your story's all shoddy!"

"It was a unique type of clone, a living being that can be controlled remotely," Kisame explained, relishing the man's confusion. "Although I must admit, two jinchuriki's and a wood element user. That's a bit much even for me."

From there, Kisame used one of the spike's protruding from Samehada's blade to open the passageway leading away from the jinchurikis' training room.

"Wait! How'd you even know how to open the gate in the first place?" Killer B demanded.

"What a foolish question! I've been spying on you the whole time!" He could hear everything, and Kisame meant  _everything._  But, before Kisame could attack, something hit him, and hard, driving him back. The next thing Kisame knew, he spat up blood.

_That was fast!_

The only indication Kisame had of what hit him occurred when he noticed Naruto in his activated beast form stuck in the wall where Kisame had only just been.

"Ah, my leg!" Naruto cried, and then turned to his teammates. "I stomped too hard!"

_Heh. He's a sitting duck!_  Kisame thought with sadistic satisfaction.

"He's not quite at the fourth level yet!" Yamato said to Killer B. "I'll help Naruto! B-san, go after him!" Kisame knew the wood-user meant him.

"I'm on his ass," Killer B rapped, "like white on rice!"

Thankful he hadn't been able to hear any more rapping, Kisame made his way through the passageway he'd opened. It was longer than he expected—or even remembered, from being situated on Killer B's back—but he managed to find the entrance to the waterfall, where three other presences waited.

They were talking, although Kisame couldn't quite understand what they said. He burst through the waterfall, full strength, and found two faces he didn't recognize and one he surprisingly did.

"Some bizarre bug?" A face he did recognize spoke. That odd man in the tight green spandex with the even stranger bowl haircut.

_He's… that bizzare beast?_  Might Gai. How could he forget that look? And those attacks...

The odd green man settled into a defensive stance.

"You—eer, me!" he said, only confusing Kisame all the more. "I'm going to beat your lost youth back into you!"

"Gai-san, that's not your inner self!" one of the jounin Kisame didn't recognize yelled to him. The shark had no idea what the speaker meant. "Watch out!" he continued. In the least, Kisame agreed with that.

Although Kisame suffered the first hit from some odd attack called "Leaf Boulder Buster," which was frankly a glorified elbow, the fight began well enough.

It was his third time fighting this bizarre man, but that wasn't even the most frustrating part. No matter how Kisame tried, the man just didn't seem to recognize him. First, Gai called him a bizarre bug, then a giant blowfish, and then the eight tails started rapping again.

He managed to drain a good deal of these ninjas chakra, especially the Hachibi, using Samehada as a decoy, but not enough before the odd green beast interfered again. He had some odd jutsu called "The Eight Celestial Gates," which gave him a significant power up and Kisame a pleasant challenge.

The shark wound up using his "Morning Peacock" shark summons for camouflage and defense, but, after that failed, he used a water element shark missile, which involved converting some of his massive chakra for additional water.

His opponent retorted with something called "Afternoon Tiger" which was the flame antithesis of his shark missile jutsu. Kisame grinned as the attacks clashed. The green man mentioned something about "youth" (again), but his opponent remained unware that Kisame's shark missile jutsu absorbed the target's chakra to grow stronger, and it did—or so he thought.

When the water settled, his opponent could be seen standing tall with freakish white eyes and scarily impressive chakra.

Now, Kisame was worried.

"The Afternoon Tiger," Gai explained, "is a combat move, not a technique. A simple punch, but faster than any other! A punch that focuses a massive amount of air pressure on a single point, then explodes the built up pressure in a single instant hit! This aura isn't chakra, either! Those who open the seventh gate, the Wonder Gate, pour glowing blue sweat from every inch of their body!"

"No wonder I thought your energy was shrinking. It was a chakra blast," Kisame grimaced, his body battered, from his position below the man's foot in the water. "This is the third time we've fought, and you had an ace up your sleeve. Well, I see you still don't recognize me."

The shark's thumb twitched, and Gai cocked back his hand to punch him in the stomach, which Kisame knew would at least cause him to pass out. Kisame blacked out, but the only thing Gai punched was water.

Another presence joined the fray.

Uchiha Madara glared up at the green beast with mismatched eyes. Although Kisame wasn't slumped over the man's shoulder as Sasuke had been at the kage's summit, the Uchiha supported him enough for Kisame not to sink.

"Tobi's" mask had changed, Kisame noticed, although he didn't have the energy to comment. His newfound leader looked different, but Kisame knew that chakra. It was Madara.

The need to be rescued was embarrassing, but Kisame felt too tired to care.

"Why did you save me?" he mumbled, blood spilling from his mouth despite not having suffered that last punch.

"I can't go losing my strongest, now can I?" Madara said simply. Kisame could tell by the man's tone that he was smiling.

The green beast was continued to wield that impressive presence from the "Eight Celestial Gates" or whatever it was called, but that didn't matter now. That would have no effect on Madara.

The Konoha squad had caught up by now. The Kyuubi had even freed himself from the wall he'd literally kicked himself into. The wood user was with him as so were those two other jounin. All of them immediately noticed Madara, too. Despite his new look, everyone recognized him immediately, as Kisame had.

"Madara!" Naruto growled. He was no longer in his tailed beast form, but he had more energy than Kisame at the moment, which made him a liability.

Still supporting the shark, Madara chuckled and formed a hand sign, staring directly at the boy. Before anyone could attack, a mass of White Zetsus sprang up from the ground, serving as enough of a distraction to occupy them.

"Another day, Naruto-kun!" the Uchiha called, and, with a final glint of his sharingan, he and Kisame disappeared into the spiraling portal.


	45. Chapter 45

Kisame couldn't believe it when he felt his consciousness returning to him. This couldn't be happening. He had to be dead—there was no way!

"Try not to move, Kisame. You really did a number on your body during that last fight." Kisame recognized Madara's tone, but an unfamiliar mask greeted him when his vision finally focused.

_That's right… he changed it._  One of his eyes was different, too, but that likely involved a longer story.

They were back at the latest hideout, the one closest to Konoha with all the odd arches and boxes surrounding it. Kisame recognized the room they were in, too—it was that odd autopsy room where Madara dissected corpses and occasionally performed surgeries. Apparently, he was storing Kisame here, too, at least for the time being.

"S-Samehada…" he managed, groping uselessly for his blade, which was nowhere to be found in the general vicinity.

"I swiped it from the eight tails shortly after you passed out," Madara said, oddly gently, and, at this, Kisame ceased his movement. Sure enough, when Kisame glanced off to the side where Madara motioned, he recognized the massive weapon leaned up against the wall.

Something pricked his shoulder, and he felt oddly drowsy.

"I gave you something for the pain. Rest, Kisame. I can't afford to lose you, too."

Without much ability to do otherwise, Kisame complied.

-

"Well, you ran into a spot of trouble, but Kisame's alive and you got a nice set of eyes."

Tobi wouldn't say that he was necessarily annoyed with Kabuto's remark after the explanation of all that just occurred, but the man's reply certainly hadn't been what he was hoping for.

"Nagato's eyes were mine to begin with," Tobi corrected. "As for Kisame, he's going to be out of commission for a while. Likely the rest of the battle. I realize you possess training as a healing nin, but we have bigger priorities at hand."

"Bigger than restoring Kisame's strength and assets to our goal?" Kabuto questioned, sounding surprised.

"You would be surprised what I have up my sleeve, Kabuto," Tobi said calmly and motioned for Kabuto to follow him. "Thanks to Kisame's efforts," Tobi spoke as they walked, "we discovered the location of both remaining jinchuriki. Our current focus is to capture the nine-tails, as you well know."

"What about it?"

"I also discovered from Kisame that the allied shinobi forces are about 80,000 in number and how they're organized. Needless to say, the three of us, Zetsu included, are a tad outnumbered."

"But my—"

"Disregarding your jutsu, Kabuto. For the time being, we're not using that until we absolutely need to. I thought we agreed?"

"Well," Kabuto began, his expression dark, "that's contingent upon where you're leading me."

"Tobi, are we really gonna trust him?" Black Zetsu questioned as he followed the duo through the passageway.

"Yes, Zetsu." It's not like they had much choice anyway, with Kisame out of the picture.

"So this is it…" Kabuto stared in awe as Tobi opened the wooden door leading to the room with the familiar demonic statue used in so many biju extractions. The massive object was a chore to transport, but that wasn't the only thing he intended to show him.

"This—" Kabuto stopped short upon noticing yet another detail.

"It still lives," Tobi finished. The first hokage's soul was trapped in the statue, supplying its power.

"Well, it's not quite that dramatic. This is something I grew from the living tissue I stole from him during our battle," Tobi continued, once again projecting his teacher. Thankfully, Kabuto didn't bother to correct him. "It has no mind of his own. Anyway, what I really want to show you is further down."

Kabuto silently followed Tobi down the long hallway, which, in this particular base, was filled with water. When the duo reached their destination, Kabuto gasped.

Tobi grinned at the man's surprise. Even he had a few tricks.

In a canyon below them stood hundreds—no, thousands—of White Zetsu clones. Their bodies intertwined between branches growing from the statue with Hashirama's soul sealed inside, all prepared to follow Tobi's every beck and call.

"One hundred thousand," Tobi informed. "All White Zetsus. Should be enough to take on 80,000 killable shinobi, don't you think?"

"This plus our trump card," Kabuto breathed. "The shinobi allies don't stand a chance."

"No," Tobi agreed, "they don't."

-

"The chakra of the white snake that slithered here belongs to Kabuto," Hyuuga Takuma stated, byakugan activated as he examined the area. In the least, they weren't in a barren wasteland filled with bones and rotting corpses this time.

"I had the bugs nearby investigate for me," a new teammate of theirs, an Aburame named Muta, who Anko had obtained in favor of one of the other regular jounins, spoke up. An insect rested on his index finger. "They're reporting a huge number of living beings below the surface."

_Below the surface_? Anko mentally repeated, trying to make sense of it all.

Tokuma followed the Aburame's instructions and looked down, and what he saw, judging by the man's expression, was horrifying.

"T-they're moving out!" he stuttered. "A lot of them!"

Anko didn't need to know exactly what it was to know it was dangerous.

"You three head back to base immediately!" Anko commanded. "I'll stay behind and search the hideout!"

Each of them protested in some way or another, but it didn't last. They knew she was right, and, either way, she was their squadron leader, and they had to do what she said.

_Be prepared, Kabuto!_  Anko thought, grimacing.  _This fight has only just begun!_

-

"Kabuto," Madara suddenly tensed as the two of them walked away from the lowest room. Black Zetsu was long gone on a different mission. "We have a problem."

"What is it, Madara?"

"Is seems we're being followed. A little leaf has strayed far from its village. A little leaf that I believe you should recognize."

"Eh?" Kabuto formed a hand sign and closed his eyes to concentrate. Then he said, "Anko."

"Shall you or I dispose of her? The last thing we need right now is her exposing our location to the Leaf, or rather, the Allied Nations. Even with the White Zetsu army, the element of surprise is certainly our greatest advantage."

"I will take care of it," Kabuto offered. "It's on my way. I have a secure place in mind to begin my technique. Not even you should know this location,  _Madara_." He teased the man once again with what he knew.

"Just do so quickly. For all we know, she could've gotten word to her village already."

-

"Tsunade-sama!" The hokage turned from her work to see a most unexpected person.

"Iruka?" she breathed. "What the hell are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to—"

"Naruto escaped from the island! B and the others are pursuing him, but he found out!"

"Where is he now?"

Iruka shrugged, and Tsunade only looked more frustrated.

"The raikage is not going to like this." The hokage's forehead crinkled with worry; her hands gripped each other across the surface of her desk.

Akira wasn't surprised to hear Naruto had found out. She knew they wouldn't be able to keep world war a secret forever. Not to mention, based on what Killer B sounded like, he probably wasn't the best of liars.

"Where are the others?" Tsunade finally said, changing the subject. "Any word from them?"

"No ma'am." Iruka shook his head. "I don't know where Naruto is headed, but I think the most we can do now is believe in him."

The hokage sighed, but she didn't disagree.

_-_

_Finally,_  Sasuke thought, wincing as his eyes readjusted to the light. It felt good to have the bandages off his eyes. He could see again, that much was nice. Madara had commissioned a White Zetsu to serve as his guard, and, try as he may, Sasuke hadn't been able to get past the thing to search for Naruto until it allowed him.

The White Zetsu had brought him up to speed regarding a few things in the meantime. About the kage's alliance after his attack on them, and how the five nations were working together to fight them. Somehow, Sasuke wasn't worried. He'd destroy them. Somehow he'd manage to destroy them. But first…

_Naruto..._  Unable to help himself, Sasuke thought back to his former teammate's words to him.

_"I'm the only one who's gonna fight Sasuke!"_  he had said, followed by  _"because you're my friend!'_

They weren't friends. The boy was delusional.

Frankly, Sasuke couldn't wait to see him dead. He wouldn't get to kill him immediately, as White Zetsu had stressed that Madara was only allowing him to fight the nine-tails if he captured the boy alive. That way, they could extract his biju. But first…

Sasuke activated the sharignan for the first time in his transplanted eyes.

He had to find him.

-

Kabuto smiled to himself as he slithered into the cave far from the eyes of enemies or allies. This place was protected by a seal. Even the best genjutsu masters like Tobi, in theory, shouldn't be able to get in here unless he wanted them to.

He'd discovered this place a long time ago, back when he'd first become a spy in Konoha. It had been a helpful place to store supplies and information, especially considering the seal he protected it with. It wasn't quite an Akatsuki hideout, but, in the least, "Madara" didn't likely know where this was.

Kabuto had just been about to get to work, too, forming the opening seal and pouring chakra into his long-awaited Edo-Tensei no jutsu, when a most unexpected voice interrupted him.

"Well, well, well. When I'd felt your chakra, I almost couldn't believe it." Crimson orbs glinted at him through the darkness, but it wasn't Madara. "Kabuto Yakushi."

The snake-like creature turned around.

"Or at least what's left of him."

Uchiha Sasuke. Speaking of genjutsu masters…

"How did you find me?"

"I thought it odd, in my quest for the nine-tails, that I sensed Orochimaru's chakra." Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "Turns out it was just a cheap imitation."

Kabuto chuckled, although it sounded much more high-pitched than Sasuke remembered.

"You really have grown, Sasuke-kun," the creature remarked. "But our differences aside, we are allies now. You should have no reason to attack me."

"Yeah, Zetsu told me," he said nonchalantly, but, rather than leaving, the boy drew his blade. "That's exactly why I'm here."

"Oh?"

"I don't trust you, Kabuto. I don't care if Madara has 'allied' with you or whatever."

_Madara?_ So this boy still didn't know, did he?

"You're a liability, no matter what you say," Sasuke continued. "And I'm here to take you out."

Before Kabuto could slither a retort, a new presence entered—or rather stumbled—into the area, bursting through the cave wall. The presence surprised Kabuto even more than Sasuke's had.

"Ack!" The energy felt different, but there was no doubt about it.

"The nine-tails jinchuriki," Kabuto greeted. "What luck."

No doubt, the boy was shocked at his new appearance. Now that Kabuto thought about it, Naruto hadn't been present during Orochimaru's demise like Sasuke. He hadn't witnessed Kabuto's choice to splice the snake sannin's DNA into his.

The boy's appearance, which certainly explained how he'd managed to make his way into the cave, was bright yellow and brimming with the Kyuubi's chakra. The yellow energy resembled the previous times when Naruto had gone berserk, but this one was smaller. More controlled.

"Who the hell are you?!" Naruto said at first. "I sensed a negative presence in here. What the hell is going on?"

"Don't tell me you don't recognize me, Naruto-kun." Kabuto pulled back his hood to reveal his face. He needed the cloak gone to properly execute his next jutsu anyway, so Kabuto proceeded to strip the entire thing off, leaving him shirtless and all his features fully exposed. But, even when his face was revealed, Naruto didn't recognize him immediately until his eyes rested on a familiar pair of glasses.

"Kabuto?" he breathed.

The silver-haired man chuckled. "The same."

"Still an idiot, as always," Sasuke remarked, looking askance. Naruto's gaze fell on the Uchiha next.

"Sasuke?" Apparently, he'd been so focused on Kabuto that he hadn't noticed his former teammate. Although, in his defense, they both arrived around the same time. "You're here, too?"

"Although I would love to fight you, it appears we have bigger problems on our hands,  _Naruto,_ " Sasuke said, emphasizing the boy's name. "All this sorry-excuse for a sage can do right now is imitate others and threaten us with dangerous jutsu. I intend to put a stop to that."

"So… you wanna team up?" Naruto translated, albeit very slowly.

"As of now, I still wish to kill you, but frankly I wish to kill him more," Sasuke stated. His eyes fixed on Kabuto and his horned head, both of which were visible with his hood removed. "So yes, I'm suggesting that we fight him together. Then, I will happily fight you afterwards."

Kabuto couldn't help but feel amused at the boy's ignorance

"You sound so sure that you're going to win," Kabuto observed. His hands formed the tiger seal. "Just wait until you see what I can do. I assure you, I am not the same Kabuto that you remember!"

Sasuke raised his lightning blade, sharingan activated, and Naruto, surrounded in his bright yellow chakra, settled into a stance, ready to strike.

This would be an interesting fight. Luckily, his opponents had yet to notice the other detail of Anko's unconscious body resting in the corner. Maybe he should point it out, when the time was right. In the least, it would serve as a successful distraction for Naruto, even if it would make no difference to Sasuke.

_Oh, Tobi,_  Kabuto thought, albeit a bit less positively this time,  _why didn't you just hand over the Uchiha boy to start?_

-

It was terrifying, Akira had to admit, meeting the other four kages and the leader of the Iron Village when she accompanied Tsunade and Shikaku to the next meeting. She'd received a few askance looks, considering her condition, but Tsunade had told her in advance to ignore it and that she could still be an asset to them while simultaneously being protected from harm.

Tsunade trusted her. That, at least, was huge comfort.

Shizune had left them to help with organizing the different medical squadrons. She'd even taken Tonton. Akira had wanted to go, too, but Tsunade forbade it, saying tto hat she needed Akira here to look at chakras and also keep her company in this "predominantly male-dominated world."

In the least, she'd gotten to meet Shikamaru's father, Shikaku. Even without Itachi's memories, she could tell where the lazy chuunin had gotten his genius.

Aside from that, she could honestly say she'd met all five kages now. There weren't any formal introductions or anything, but she was here, at the meeting, and could see each of them quite clearly.

The raiakge was aggressive, like Tsunade, and did not take the news well that Naruto had escaped from the island. The tsuchikage, although elderly, had some good ideas, and made a point to remind everyone the importance of finding Naruto for the sake of the younger generation. He was definitely the type to give elderly wisdom.

And the mizukage—she was beautiful, just like Tsunade, and seemed quite intelligent. She was a little more reserved than the slug princess, but not by much, and still preferred to insert her opinion on things. She showed much less outward displeasure at Naruto's actions, and, rather than expressing her anger, merely offered suggestions as to what to do.

Then there was Gaara—despite his young age, he was wise. Itachi's memories hadn't been familiar with the boy save for when Akatsuki had kidnapped him, and even then, Itachi didn't know much save for what the boy's biju had been. But, despite his age, he was both wise and strong. A rare combination.

Never in a million years had Akira thought she'd be able to sit in on something as amazing as this. The war certainly wasn't so amazing, but the strategies were, and the people behind it were, as well.

_I still can't believe this is actually happening._

-

Kabuto cackled as blood dripped from the side of Sasuke's mouth after his last attack.

Flames from Sasuke's Amaterasu surrounded the area, but none of them seemed to hit Kabuto in quite the way they needed to. Sasuke was forced to extinguish them almost immediately as a safety measure. Even the Kyuubi wasn't immune to those.

He was missing something. Sasuke didn't know what yet, but he'd find out.

Naruto was taking his fair hit from the situation as well, having been knocked back by a snake summons jutsu and thrown in a cave wall. The activated beast mode was certainly helping him, but with how powerful Kabuto had become and with how much Naruto was still learning to control it, it was no wonder that they were both still struggling.

"Just give up!" Kabuto taunted. "It's useless!"

Sasuke's eyes narrowed and he gripped his blade just a bit tighter, pouring chakra into it for what felt like the thousandth time that day to summon lightning to its surface.

"You will, die, Kabuto," Sasuke stated, his tone deadpan. Blood ran down both their features. "My eyes have seen this, and what my eyes see  _always_  become a reality."

"What are we gonna do, Sasuke?" Naruto said in a low voice. Nothing they'd done so far had seemed to work against Kabuto. Even their combined strength did little to phase him.

"If you can distract him," Sasuke said, his expression stoic, "I believe I have an idea."

Naruto nodded, and, after executing the hand sign for another kage bunshin, the boy charged.

"Rasengan!"

It didn't hit. Kabuto's navel snake struck Naruto at just the right moment to send him flying, and then something else happened. A face emerged from the Kabuto's chest, and the next thing Sasuke knew, the floor spiked. If he hadn't jumped, the Uchiha would have been impaled.

He'd seen this jutsu before. Almost as if…

"Kimimaro…" Sasuke recognized. The features were deformed, but that was definitely him. It shouldn't have taken him this long to recognize, but it did. Those spikes had been bones.

"What?" Naruto sounded confused.

"Kabuto has the DNA from Orochimaru's Sound Five inserted into him," Sasuke clarified, his tone still oddly deadpan. "That's how he's been able to use their techniques. That was Kimimaro, the bone user from the Kaguya clan. That was his technique you used just now."

Kabuto grinned manically. His clawed fingers weaved into another hand sign. "Right again, Sasuke."

"Just what are you planning?" If he had Kimimaro's DNA, there had to be others. Just what was this jutsu he was planning?

They fought. As much as Sasuke resented Naruto at present, they made a good team. Regardless, Sasuke inability to figure out exactly what he was missing about Kabuto's jutsu only served to further exacerbate the situation. None of his genjutsus were seeming to hit, even with Naruto's help. He resorted to using one of Susanoo's arrows, but somehow that  _missed._

_He dodged it?_  Sasuke thought in disbelief. Kabuto noted his expression.

"My perceptual ability has been upgraded," he explained. "I have the forces of nature to help me!"

"Is he using some kind of nature chakra?" Naruto questioned. He didn't have long to ponder the idea, though. Kabuto threw another snake attack at both of them. Stalactites and stalagmites alike we sent flying from the shock wave, forcing Naruto to dodge them as well as any other attack Kabuto tried to pull.

Sasuke had Susanoo to protect him from any major attacks, or at the least the slower ones. Kidomaru came out next from Kabuto's freakish-looking torso, and with it came a spider web attack. Sasuke managed to avoid it, but Naruto was caught.

One burst of yellow energy later, the Kyuubi was free, only to be hit with another web projectile, only this one, he dodged. To test something, Sasuke threw a lightning attack at Kabuto using his blade, only to have it deflected, but Kidomaru wasn't the face he saw this time.

It was Tayuya. Susanoo may protect him from any physical attack, but genjutsu was a completely different story. Only a few notes from the deceased Sound girl's flute sounded, and before Sasuke could blink, he was in a completely different place.

_This isn't good…_  Sasuke grimaced. As much as he didn't like to admit it, Kabuto was winning.

"It seems you have the same ability as Juugo, too," Sasuke remarked, despite the illusion. "Were you attacked by Orochimaru's curse seal?"

Kabuto chuckled, and, although Sasuke couldn't physically see him, he could hear him.

"No, that's just a pretension trick," he replied. "Only that kind of ability can be gained by self-training at the Ryuchidou."

Sasuke pondered for a moment. He'd heard that name from Orochimaru quite some time ago.

"I finally found it!" Kabuto declared. "The legendary place equally famous as Mizubokuzan and Shikkotsurin!" The frog village and the slug village, where Naruto and Sakura had respectively trained. Kabuto's next words only confirmed what Sasuke already knew. "Not only Orochimaru-sama, but I dreamed to go there, too!"

_So he managed to do something that Orchimaru didn't, eh?_

"Under the sage's guidance," Kabuto continued, "I trained myself and gained that ability! It wasn't from the curse seal at all! I finally surpassed Orochimaru!"

Sasuke said nothing.

"The most Orochimaru-sama managed to do was discover that the Ryuchidou was the source of Juugo's power. He had no interest in why he went berserk. Rather, he just focused on what made him that way. Even he couldn't become a true sage like me! Not just a snake, a true dragon!"

As Kabuto speech finished, the negative effects from Tayuya's genjutsu kicked in and Sasuke's ears filled with the most unpleasant high pitched ringing he'd ever heard. It was so intense that his vision went black. He couldn't move, either—all his senses were completely cut off.

Naruto couldn't be much better. They were sitting ducks. Kabuto could use whatever jutsu he wanted to kill them now. Sasuke couldn't even activate Susanoo like this.

Another bright flash occurred, but this one wasn't from Kabuto.

It was Naruto. Somehow he'd managed to use the Kyuubi to break out of the illusion, releasing Sasuke, as well. That same yellow energy surrounded him, but details of his outfit had changed.

One of Kabuto's deadly snake attacks headed straight for each of them just as Naruto broke from the illusion. Sasuke had yet to completely recover, rendering him helpless, but Naruto was fast enough to deflect both attacks, effectively saving them.

But, when Naruto deflected the attack and sent it flying back, Kabuto turned to water, much like Suigetsu.

"What the hell?" Naruto blinked in confusion. It was the perfect opportunity for Kabuto to attempt another hit, but this time Sasuke was there to block.

"He can turn his body to water much like one of my former associates," Sasuke revealed, struggling briefly against the attack. He gripped the sword with two hands, using the seal on his wrists to send an electrical surge through the metal.

The surge worked, and Kabuto, although not injured, drew back, allowing them both to regroup.

"If he has Juugo and Suigetsu's abilities, it's safe to assume he has accelerated healing abilities, too, just like Karin," Sasuke added. Naruto, although he didn't know these people, understood well enough to nod in acknowledgement.

Kabuto slithered about on the ground, slowly reforming from his former liquid state. "Right again, Sasuke." He formed a hand sign for another jutsu, and, with him being in hermit mode, they both knew it was going to be powerful. Kabuto filled his lungs and spat a water jutsu at them. "Senpou Hakugeki no jutsu!"

The water took the form of a dragon, reminding him of a smaller version of Zabuza's water dragon jutsu. Although Sasuke wasn't hit, Naruto was.

Still exhausted from breaking them out of the illusion, Naruto's reflexes failed and he was smashed into the cave wall. Sasuke attempted to halt the attack using the fully formed hand of his Susanoo, but Kabuto threw a separate attack at him with Kidomaru, forcing Sasuke to block that instead. Although Sasuke had no grievous injuries, the force of the hit threw him to opposite side of the cave.

When the dust cleared, thanks to Kidomaru's web jutsu, Sasuke was pinned and the yellow glow surrounding Naruto had disappeared. Judging by his motionless form, the nine-tails jinchuriki was unconscious.

_This is isn't good._  Sasuke needed to think of something and fast. Considering Kabuto's alliance with Madara, would he risk killing Naruto? His question was soon answered as the dragon sage picked up the boy by the throat, using one of his clawed hands.

"If you die," Kabuto began, "Madara will be forced to use only my jutsu! He will be fully reliant on me, and I will have full control!"

But, just as his other hand drew back to slit the boy's throat, the strangest thing happened. Another burst of energy pulsated through the room, but this one wasn't yellow and Sasuke didn't see chakra: it was crows.

Sasuke would know that cawing anywhere, but, even so, he couldn't believe his eyes. Kabuto wasn't gripping Naruto's throat, anymore. In fact, he had been thrown across the room. Although he retained consciousness, he looked just as shocked as Sasuke.

A second set of red eyes greeted Kabuto's horrified face as a familiar black and red Akatsuki cloak blew in an unseen wind. The person they saw wasn't Naruto anymore.

It was Itachi.

The elder Uchiha used his right hand, oddly free of his usual Akatsuki ring, to brush back the bangs from his face.

"H-how…." Kabuto stuttered, his eyes wide. "The Edo Tensei… I didn't activate it yet…"

"Heh." It wasn't quite a laugh, but Itachi definitely sounded amused. "I have been watching all this time behind the Kyuubi's eyes, and let me tell you." His lips twisted in a smile. "You mind is a crowded place, Naruto-kun."

"Nii-san…" Sasuke breathed. Crimson eyes stared into one another, but, as they did, Sasuke felt his mind become suddenly drowsy.

Itachi was casting a genjutsu on him. A genjutsu that caused him to sleep.

-

Hyuuga Tokuma's eyes widened in disbelief at what his byakugan had just witnessed.

It had been scary enough witnessing the White Zetsu army beneath the ground. In the least, what was left of their team minus Captain Mitarashi, had managed to get word back to Konoha and ultimately the hokage. After that, Tokuma had decided to double back, bringing just Muta this time, and he was certainly glad they had.

"What do you see?" Muta inquired. "My communication bugs are picking up a lot of commotion from that area."

"They have Captain Mitarashi," Tokuma stated, and Muta's expression fell. "She's alive!"

"And?" Muta knew there was more.

"The place is protect by a seal, but I can see who's in there," Tokuma continued. "I've located Uchiha Sasuke, as well! He seems to be fighting Kabuto!"

"And?"

"I swear I saw the Kyuubi jinchuriki's chakra just now," Tokuma insisted, his eyes straining. "But…" he trailed off.

"But what?"

"This can't be! That chakra! It's Uchiha Itachi! I don't see Naruto anymore."

-

Tsunade impatiently tapped a finger on her forearm as she stood in the hallway outside the kage's meeting room, waiting for one of the helpers to come back with her meal. The kages' meeting had taken a break for everyone to discuss things more in depth with their people and receive updates. Tsunade was no exception, but she was also utilizing this time to eat something.

"Where's Shizune when you need her?" Tsunade sighed. "She was always so quick with this sort of thing, unless I asked for sake."

Akira said nothing, not really knowing how to comment. She could have offered to use her byakugan and see what the holdup was, but she didn't get the chance. Someone came bursting into the room, but it wasn't the helper.

"Tsunade-sama!"

Both of them turned, although Tsunade looked more annoyed than anything.

It was Hyuuga Tokuma and an Aburame Akira didn't recognize.

"What could it possibly be now?" the hokage muttered. The last thing she wanted right now was bad news.

"It's urgent!" Tokuma insisted. The Aburame behind him nodded. "We've located Kabuto! Sasuke seems to be with him, but unlike Madara, he seems to be in conflict with him!"

"And? Why haven't we done anything about it yet?"

"There's more!" The Hyuuga continued, and Tsunade quirked her eyebrow. "The Kyuubi—"

"Have they captured him?" Tsunade cut off, and Takuma merely shook his head.

"It does not seem so, Tsunade-sama," the man replied. "But his chakra has disappeared!"

"What do you mean 'his chakra has disappeared'?"

"I saw it with my own eyes," Tokuma began, his tone ominous. "I would never have believed it otherwise."

"Believed what?"

"It was him. Naruto's chakra was replaced, or—or something! It was Uchiha Itachi! He's alive!"

If Akira had been holding something, she would have dropped it. Thankfully, the man was too focused on Tsunade to notice her lavender eyes widen.

_It can't be…_  Her mind rejected the notion. Itachi's chakra? There had to be some mistake. His memories weren't telling her anything. Could he have perhaps blocked something during the memory transfer?

"Keep your voice down!" Tsunade hissed, and briefly glanced around to ensure no one had overheard. "Have you sent out another team to investigate?"

"We came straight to you," Muta spoke up. "The cave where we saw them is protected by a genjutsu seal, and neither of us are proficient in disabling that sort of thing."

"I'll send a team with Hatake Kakashi, although Kami knows we will need him back quickly," Tsunade said. Her eyes narrowed. "You'd better not be lying!"

"I swear it, Tsunade-sama! He saw it and my bugs confirmed it!"

Akira's mind was in a jumble. It couldn't be Itachi. She'd buried him! She remembered doing it with her own two hands. The blood, the tears—there was just no way.

"Tokuma," Akira began, drawing the man's attention to her. The Hyuuga girl's voice shook. "Where did you saw this cave was?"

"It's in the Mountains' Graveyard," he answered. "The wasteland between Taki and Oto with all the animal corpses."

_I have to see for myself._ This man wasn't lying. His chakras hadn't been disrupted at all. He fully believed what he was saying, and so did the Aburame. Akira's hands balled into fists.

There was only one way to find out for sure.

Tsunade opened her mouth to respond to Tokuma, but stopped short when the next thing she noticed was Akira taking off.

It wasn't easy, travelling quickly while also being six months pregnant, but, with the sort of determination Akira had at the moment, she managed.

"Akira!" the hokage called her name, but Akira hadn't heard a thing. She passed by a group of samurai who had been talking together, but they didn't realize Tsunade wanted them to stop her until it was too late.

"Dammit!" Tsunade swore, and all Tokuma and Muta could do was glance at each other in confusion.

-

With her byakugan, it didn't take Akira long to find the cave, even with Tokuma's vague directions. Hiding her chakra had been the hard part. Tsunade sent a few samurai out after her, but she knew how to avoid them.

Tokuma hadn't been kidding about the seal, either.

Honestly, the thing reminded her of the seal on the Akatsuki members' doors, just with genjutsu instead of chakra shocks. Either, the chakra veins extended in a way that also required a certain person's chakra to unlock it. Undoubtedly, that person's chakra had to be Kabuto's or maybe even Orochimaur's, but she needed to figure a way around that.

And she did. It took a good ten minutes to figure out as opposed to her usual five, but she did it, and the genjutsu seal was unlocked.

With her byakugan fully focused on unlocking the seal, she hadn't been able to keep track of the fight, but she could still sense presences. Itachi's memories recognized one as Kabuto, and the other was unquestionably Uchiha Sasuke. But the third…

Akira walked into the cave, stepping carefully in case other traps were set. The place was trashed, to say in the least. There had definitely been a fight here.

The first person she noticed was Uchiha Sasuke, unconscious and pinned to the wall with what looked like spider webs. Then there was Kabuto, who didn't even look like the Kabuto Itachi remembered. He looked more Orochimaru, her mind told her. He was caught in a genjutsu, but Akira didn't know what kind.

In the corner, Akira sensed Anko. Her presence was weak, but she would live. A white snake, possibly a skin, bearing traces of Kabuto's chakra lay beside her, but why, Akira had no idea. But, despite the woman's needs, Akira's attention diverted. She couldn't believe her eyes, even when she saw him.

The cloak was easy enough to imitate; she'd had one herself at one point. But those eyes, that hair, and that face…

"Itachi." If he sensed her, he didn't react. His back was turned to her, but she could still recognize him. This wasn't Naruto, anymore.

It couldn't be a clone, or even an impure world resurrection. Was it a genjutsu? Would a genjutsu even remember her?

He turned around, and beyond the shadow of a doubt, it was Itachi.

His eyes scanned her body. At first, he didn't seem to recognize her. His gaze turned to Sasuke, who remained stuck to the wall, and, for a moment, Akira feared he may choose to attend to the boy instead of noticing of her.

It was an agonizing several seconds, waiting to see what he would do. One of his eyes lit up with the familiar three-sided pinwheel of Amaterasu, and the cobwebs holding Sasuke burst into black flames, releasing the boy. The flames extinguished in time not to burn the Uchiha as he fell to the floor.

Akira waited, still unsure if Itachi would turn to care for Sasuke. But then, he spoke.

"Akira?"

He remembered.

Although highly unwise for her to do considering the uncertainty of the situation, Akira ran forward and captured whatever the hell this creature was in an embrace, as close as her pregnant belly would allow.

She couldn't believe it—it even smelled like him.

But then came the hurt, and the second she let go of him, she cocked her hand back for a punch, and, although it was light—certainly lighter than what she'd thrown at Akatsuki—she sent him flying back a few feet. Tears stung the Hyuuga girl's vision.

"Start talking!" she demanded. Her voice choked.

Itachi, or whoever the hell he was, rubbed the side of his face, but didn't take his eyes off of her. She wasn't exactly in her ninja outfit, but he knew it was her by now.

Somehow, he didn't look surprised.

"I've been watching, through Naruto's eyes," he stated simply. Tears fell freely down the Hyuuga girl's face. "And," he took a step forward, "I am so, so sorry, Akira."

His steps were tentative. Clearly, he remembered what kind of temper she had, too.

"All this time," she choked. "All this time you were  _watching_?"

"I gave Naruto some of my power just before I fought Sasuke," Itachi explained. Even after her initial embrace, they weren't touching right now. "It manifested in the form of my consciousness, or at least a piece of it, to be used if ever a situation like this occurred. I had hoped that he would not require it, but with Kabuto coming into the picture, I'm glad I did."

"So… Kabuto?" Akira stole a glance back at the man. "What… what exactly happened to him?"

"I used a new eye technique that even Sasuke does not possess," Itachi answered. "Izanami. It is an endless loop in which the only escape is to admit one's mistakes. I managed to use it shortly after Kabuto was trying to recover from the surprise of seeing me."

"So… you're… Naruto?" she managed.

He smiled that sideways smile she would have killed to see just ten minutes ago.

"In a sense."

"Why? Why didn't you include this possibility when you transferred your knowledge to me?!"

"Because I didn't know if it would actually occur. I didn't want to give you false hope that you may see me again and cause you to do something reckless—"

"What, like this?" Akira motioned downwards to herself. Tears continued to stream down her face. Every muscle in her body clenched, mostly out of rage. "What the hell did you think I was going to do? Just go back to the Whirlpool Village and live my life?"

"I had hoped," Itachi admitted. Akira averted her gaze when she felt her nose beginning to clog up, too. "But, just like Sasuke, I did not account for your own free will and trust in your own strength."

At this, she took the final step forward and hugged him for a second time, this time, without punching him afterwards. He hugged her back, and she felt one of his hands find its way onto her stomach. Face buried in his chest, Akira shook her head. She was getting his—or Naruto's, she couldn't really tell—shirt wet. But, whoever's this was, she wouldn't trade it for anything.

"I still can't believe it's really you," she managed, and placed one of her hands over his, the one on her bulging belly. Both of them went silent; Akira was the one to break it.

"I should have told you sooner." It was even better that he knew what she meant. His thumb caressed her belly.

Itachi shook his head. "I didn't exactly give you much chance." And that, she couldn't argue with.

She moved her hand away from his and resumed hugging him with both arms. Akira clung to him desperately.

"How long… do you have?" She probably didn't want to know, but Akira asked anyway.

"Not long," he replied, and, at the ambiguous answer, Akira buried her face deeper into his chest.

"I miss you so much!" she sobbed, and just like he'd done after Tsukuyomi, at Akatsuki, and any other time she'd broken down, he simply held her tighter and rested his chin atop her head. Itachi's chakra was grower weaker, slowly but surely. She could sense it. If there was anything she wanted to say, she had to say it quickly.

She could have said anything. Told him about the five nations uniting, about her tutelage under Tsunade, or even how Naruto had sworn to save his brother no matter what happened. But she didn't say any of those things. Instead, she stated what was on the forefront of her mind this entire time.

"It's twins," she blurted, although he probably already knew from watching through Naruto's eyes. Then she mustered the courage to look him in the eye again. They were black, like an onyx. "I'm having a girl and a boy."

He didn't say anything. Itachi only held her tighter. His chakra faded even more now, so much so that it had begun to affect his features. His face glowed blue with chakra, and slowly, she was losing sight of the man she loved.

She felt his lips on her forehead, and, trying not to think about the fact this was still technically Naruto's body, she pulled him down to her mouth and held him there. Nothing messy or even tongue-involved—just the feeling of his mouth over hers was enough. She would remember his parting words to her for the rest of her life.

"I leave Sasuke to Naruto," he said, and Akira knew there would be a second part. Their foreheads touched. More tears streamed down her cheeks as he continued to disappear. "And I leave Konoha to you." One of his hands rested on her stomach again. The other one tangled in her hair. "I love you, Akira." His lips brushed her forehead for a final time. "Goodbye."

With that, he was gone. All that remained was Naruto's unconscious form, arms slumped to his side, which, considering she'd only just been hugging "Itachi," she already supported.

Akira fell to her knees, but not from Naruto's weight. She eased the boy onto the ground, and, after wiping the moisture from her face, activated her byakugan to scan for injuries.

There were some fractures in his arms and a lot of cuts and bruises, but nothing appeared devastatingly wrong. She set to work on healing what she could, and, just as she did, a familiar chakra spring to life on her radar. To her relief, it wasn't hostile.

"Akira-san?"

Hatake Kakashi.

-

The copy ninja made his way into the cave along with Iruka, Naruto's favorite academy teacher, and Raidou, a jounin with spiked brown hair and a prominent scar over his nose that extended past his cheekbone. Thanks to Tsunade's briefing, Kakashi wasn't surprised to see the Hyuuga girl.

Her eyes were puffy and red, likely from crying, but she didn't let that stop her from acknowledging them.

"Sasuke's unconscious," she stated, motioning with her head to the boy who had fallen from what was no longer Kidomaru's spider web bindings. "Anko is in the corner there. She's alive!"

Raidou slowly made his way over to Kabuto, briefly performed an examination, then turned back to Kakashi.

"He's in a genjutsu. A powerful one." At Raidou's words, Kakashi raised an eyebrow at Akira, but she pretended not to notice.

"They were like that when I got here," she said nonchalantly.

"Were you the one to deactivate the genjutsu seal?" Kakashi questioned, stooping to one knee beside her, where she appeared to be healing an unconscious Naruto. Green chakra illuminated both her palms.

Akira shrugged, and Kakashi optimistically translated the gesture as an assurance that she would explain things to him and Tsunade later.

"Boss!" Kakashi turned when Iruka addressed him. The academy teacher knelt in the corner of the cave next to Mitarashi Anko. "She's conscious! She's calling for you!"

"Take care of Naruto!" Kakashi spoke hurriedly and then scurried over to the dolphin ninja.

Upon closer inspection, Anko muttered something, something no one could quite make out until Kakashi used his sharignan to read her lips.

"Destroy it…" she kept saying over and over. Kakashi's gaze fell to the side where an odd white reptile eerily similar to one of Orochimaru's summons also resided. When Kakashi motioned to the serpent, she stopped.

She had to mean that. The copy ninja lifted his hitiate to reveal his sharignan.

"Kamui!" The thing split in half and disappeared into separate dimensions. At this, Anko relaxed enough to slip back into unconsciousness.

"Akira!" Kakashi called. She listened enough to rotate her head. "After you're done with Naruto, we're going to need you over here." They should have brought a medic with them, but most of them were already occupied with separate duties. Unfortunately, Tsunade hadn't been able to spare one.

_"Also,"_  Kakashi remembered the hokage adding,  _"Akira may be there, too. Feel free to use her if you can manage to talk some sense in to her."_

In the least, he'd found her.

Next, his gaze fell to Sasuke, who lay semi-peacefully sprawled on the cave floor.

He could kill the boy. He had every right to. But he remembered Naruto's words that  _he_  would be the one to fight Sasuke, and Kakashi had agreed. So instead, he merely bound the Uchiha and cast an additional genjutsu to ensure he would remain unconscious for the duration of their trip back to Konoha. Ibiki would have plenty of time to interrogate him later.

Iruka agreed to carry Sasuke; Raidou, meanwhile, opted to carry Naruto, which left Kakashi to carry Anko, which he did bridal style. For the sake of convenience, Raidou carefully situated Naruto onto his back and Iruka, much less carefully, slumped Sasuke over his shoulder.

It had certainly been fortuitous, bringing three people. Kabuto was trapped here, but Tsunade would send a specialized group to take care of him later.

It was hard to believe, but they'd actually won this battle. Kabuto had been defeated and Sasuke was captured. The war was far over, but, Kakashi had to admit, they made a huge step in the right direction.


	46. Chapter 46

"So what you're telling me," Tsunade reiterated, her arms crossed, "is that you just  _happened_  upon Naruto and Sasuke's unconscious bodies along with Kabuto trapped in a powerful genjutsu?"

"That seems to be the story we're going with." Akira laughed nervously. Here they were, back in the building where the kages had agreed to hold their all-day meeting. In the least, this one was in Konoha. Raidou and Iruka had only just left, and Akira did not want to risk saying anything they may hear.

"Sasuke has been heavily sedated for any medical procedures and is currently under heavy guard," Kakashi stepped in. "Naruto and Anko have been hospitalized, as well. Anko is weak, but stable, and Naruto is fine. Akira did well with healing him. It's just for protective measures at this point."

Tsunade nodded her approval. "I commend you and your team for getting Anko back safely and for capturing both Sasuke and Kabuto." She paused before turning to the Hyuuga girl. "And Akira…"

Akira braced herself.

"Don't ever fucking do that again!"

"Yes, hokage-sama," Akira squeaked, her tone tiny and meek. Admittedly, although she was glad to have done it, it had been wrong of her to just run out. She should have waited and asked permission to go with Kakashi's team, but she hadn't been thinking anything beyond "Itachi's alive" at the time.

"Kakashi, I expect a full report later," Tsunade stated. Kakashi nodded his acknowledgement. "The other kages will be pleased to know Sasuke is in our custody, and, with Kabuto out of the picture, the only one left to fight is Madara."

"But he still has the power of all the other biju that he's captured," Kakashi pointed out. "Plus the White Zetsu army."

"Speaking of which!" Tsunade interjected. "The lab finished analyzing the results from one of the White Zetsu bodies left behind after an attack."

"And?"

"Our analysis, which occurred partly thanks to Sakura's help, found that Madara created the creatures by cloning the cells of the first hokage, my grandfather. We suspect that was how Madara managed to multiply so many creatures and keep his body alive for this long."

"Would this mean that they're also able to use the first hokage's techniques?"

"We believe so," Tsunade confirmed. "It's something we should all keep in mind. Perhaps, with further research, it may help us figure out a faster way to defeat them."

"What about Naruto and the eight tails?" Akira inquired. "Akatsuki knows about the island now, so where are they going to go?"

Tsunade sighed. "For the time being, Naruto is under medical supervision and temporary restraint."

-

"Granny, this is really unnecessary!"

The moment Tsunade, Kakashi, and Akira entered into the room, Naruto already begged his case. Clearly, the space hadn't been initially intended as a private hospital room, but the kages had done an impressive job converting it.

The room was tiny, maybe half the size of a typical bedroom and likely used for storage at one point. The door they walked through was the only entrance, and, although the lighting was passable, no windows were present to allow for natural light or potential escape attempts. Unless Naruto intended to make a great deal of noise, he was stuck here.

"Why do I have to be restrained?" Although Akira understood the hokage's reasoning, she did pity the boy. They'd already passed an array of guards at the door. In addition to a complete lack of privacy, he was tied to the makeshift hospital bed with chakra-infused restraints.

"It's for your own safety, Naruto," the hokage answered stiffly. "We can't have you running off again like you did on the island."

"Naruto, it's okay-o!" Akira quirked an eyebrow at the muscular dark-skinned man at Naruto's bedside. The eight-tails jinchuriki, according to Tsunade. His presence reminded her of the raikage only more… free? Nonetheless, with five people in the room, especially one of the eight-tail's physique, things were unpleasantly cramped.

"Killer B has agreed to guard you," Tsunade continued. "Only the kages and those accompanying them are aware of your current location, and we'd like to keep it that way."

"But what about when Madara attacks? I can't just sit here through that!"

"We will discuss that when it happens," Tsunade sounded annoyed. "That's final. I don't want to hear another word from you about the subject, Naruto!"

"Yes, Granny Tsunade…" His capitulation surprised everyone, but Akira's blood ran cold at the jinchuriki's next question. "What about Sasuke? You said he was captured with me."

"You were both found unconscious, and Kabuto was in a genjutsu," Tsunade replied, and, for the briefest moment, her gaze flickered to Akira. "We believe that you and Sasuke were the ones who managed to do this."

It was a lie, and everyone except Naruto and Killer B knew it.

"But Kurama doesn't use genjutsu and hasn't told me anything!" Naruto protested. "All I remember is passing out!"

_Itachi's consciousness probably used the sharignan to keep the Kyuubi quiet about anything involving him in Naruto's head._

Only a person bearing the sharignan could control the Kyuubi, and Itachi certainly fell into that category. But didn't that also mean Itachi's consciousness had been stuck in there with Naruto's mother and father?

Before Akira could ponder that last thought too deeply, someone else spoke, breaking the Hyuuga girl from her trance.

"Perhaps it was Sasuke who put him in the genjutsu and you just don't remember helping," Kakashi offered. Naruto vehemently shook his head.

"Something doesn't add up!" he insisted, and at this point Akira couldn't take it anymore.

"Tsunade-sama?" Despite the heat of the moment, amber eyes turned to her. "May I leave the room?" The hokage didn't look surprised. More than likely, she knew why.

"Kakashi." The copy nin's half-lidded gaze lolled toward her. "Please escort Akira back to the meeting room. I'm sure the others are eager to hear your report on what happened."

Kakashi obeyed.

"So…" her escort trailed off. They were alone now in the safety of an empty hallway. "Want to tell me what that was all about?"

"You mean with Naruto?"

Kakashi shook his head.

"What actually happened in that cave," Kakashi specified. Akira instinctively tensed. "We both know Naruto and Sasuke weren't the ones to take down Kabuto."

"It was Itachi!" Akira blurted. Kakashi raised his only visible eyebrow.

"He didn't include it in the memory transfer to me, but he apparently gave Naruto a portion of his power, which only a life-threatening situation could trigger, like with Kabuto." Her eyes were downcast. "It made Naruto turn into Itachi for as long as that power would allow."

"So he was the one to put Kabuto in that genjutsu?"

Akira nodded. "Izanami, he called it. A jutsu to determine one's fate. Apparently Kabuto can only come out of it when he admits his own mistakes. Until then, he's stuck in an endless loop."

Kakashi laughed, ever so slightly.

"Tsunade was right. It was incredibly reckless of you to go out there."

"I was," she admitted, "but if I hadn't, I wouldn't have gotten there in time to see Itachi before he faded back into Naruto."

"I guess it all worked out then."

He didn't need to tell her that she had more than just her to protect. She knew that. But he understood the burning desire of wanting to be reunited with lost loved ones—Kakashi understood that only too well.

"I'll explain the matter privately to Tsunade in my own report. I see no point in the other kages learning about your or Itachi's involvement."

Akira's shoulders sagged with relief.

"Thank you, Kakashi."

-

_Zuzuzuzuzuzu_

Somehow, the moment Tobi heard the trademark sound of Zetsu's entrance, he just knew it was going to be bad news.

"Kabuto failed," Black Zetsu informed. "Sasuke's been captured by the Leaf."

"How is this possible?"

"Itachi."

" _What_?"

"He left a piece of himself in Naruto, set to activate in a time of crisis. Apparently the battle with Pein wasn't dire enough. It went off during Naruto and Sasuke's fight against Kabuto. The Leaf simply happened to capture Sasuke afterwards."

This wasn't good. Tobi hadn't just lost one pawn, he'd lost two. Not to mention, Kisame was still unconscious after his fight with Gai. And Sasuke… the boy would not be brainwashed easily by the Leaf—his hatred was too strong. But, at least for the time being, he was out of commission.

"We will have to expedite our processes," Tobi stated and then sighed. "I will rally the White Zetsu army. We attack the Allied Shinobi Forces at once."

-

Sasuke lost track of how many times he'd woken up this week feeling as if his head were split in half. In the least, he could see. Despite being in a dimly lit room, slivers of light peeked through in slits from a nearby window—a window with bars on it.

_Wait a minute…_

"Finally awake, eh, Uchiha?"

He knew that voice—Ibiki?

"So…" Sure enough, the scarred man's face came into view. "Despite your vows to destroy us, we managed to capture you."

Ignoring him, the Uchiha continued to look about the room. He was on a bed, of sorts. It was more like metal slab really. His hands and feet were tied with chakra-enforced restraints and there were seals and instruments displayed all over the room—instruments of torture.

It bothered Sasuke, not so much that he was captured, but rather that he didn't entirely remember what had happened. He'd teamed up with Naruto for convenience's sake with the full intentions of fighting him once Kabuto was taken out, but, somehow, that hadn't happened. How could he have been so careless as to allow Konoha to capture him?

"Where's Kabuto?" he settled for saying.

Ibiki gave a sarcastic huff, his look menacing. "I have no reason to tell you." But, somehow, if Sasuke stared long enough, he had a feeling that he would. And Ibiki did.

"It appears that whatever genjutsu you used on the man worked," he explained, not giving any major details. "And part of why I'm here," he began, eying a particular curved blade on the wall, "is to find out exactly how that is."

Sasuke wanted to tell his interrogator the futility of his actions, considering Sasuke honestly had no idea, but the Uchiha said nothing. He didn't respect this man. He didn't respect Konoha. Why should he tell them anything?

By now, Ibiki had removed that curved knife from the wall and held it near to the Uchiha's face, clearly intending to use it. Ibiki was looking at him, but not directly, so genjutsu was a no go. Sasuke braced himself but nothing happened.

Another presence entered the room.

"Ibiki, how is it?"

Tsunade.

The hokage was alone and looked serious, more serious than Ssauke had ever seen her.

"We were just about to get started," the scarred man said, not tearing his gaze away from wherever wasn't Sasuke's eyes. "You came in just in time to enjoy the show."

"I'd like to talk to him first." Sasuke wasn't surprised. This should be good. Likely Naruto would be mentioned in some way.

Ibiki said nothing. He didn't even look surprised. He just set down the knife and left the room as she asked. Now he was alone with the hokage. She was still hokage, right? Considering he'd killed the other one intended to take her place.

"I'll say this once, Sasuke," Tsunade began, and Sasuke noted that she, too, knew better than to look him in the eye. "If you cooperate with us, it will show in your sentence. I may not even ask Ibiki to continue."

Sasuke scoffed. By the looks of it, she expected him to.

"Why should I believe anything you people say?" Sasuke spat. "You're all liars."

She looked less surprised than he thought she would, admittedly.

"I know about your brother, Sasuke," she said instead, and although he wanted to raise an eyebrow, Sasuke fought to keep his expression straight. "I understand why you did what you did. Madara was manipulating you, manipulating your emotions."

"You understand nothing!" Sasuke snapped, and wished with all his might that he could be fighting this woman instead of just talking to her. His tone dropped at his next words.

"Madara wasn't manipulating me. I was glad to go along with it." Tsunade may have not been directly involved, but Sasuke still wished to kill her. To cleanse the Uchiha clan from her mind, just as he desired to do with the rest of the village.

"What Konoha did to the Uchiha clan was wrong," she emphasized, and Sasuke listened with little interest to what she said next. "But what you're doing will solve nothing. Attacking Konoha will not bring your family back!"

"And what? You think offering  _sympathy_  is going to make me change my mind?" This woman was worse to talk to than Naruto. At least Naruto was young and had an excuse for being stupid. She was old enough to where she should know better.

"We captured your team," Tsunade said, still not answering him directly. "The two males? They were caught impersonating the samurai."

"You may want to keep an eye on them. Juugo can get quite… difficult, when he's upset."

"And the girl? The one you tried to have Sakura kill? We have her, too. Ibiki has already gone through the process of questioning her."

Karin. Of course, she'd talk. Not that she knew much of anything, anyway.

"Was that how you found out about my brother?"

"Madara informed Naruto and Kakashi, who informed us," Tsunade stated. Sasuke turned his gaze away from trying to catch Tsunade's and instead turned his attention to the prison cell's—face it, that's what it was—stone ceiling. His expression oozed apathy.

"And you believed him." Sasuke chuckled, the most emotion she'd gotten out of him thus far. "You're no better, hokage."

She opened her mouth, probably intending to retort in some way, but she stopped short. It wasn't Sasuke who stopped her, though. A deep rumble shook the ground, probably the entire building. Even Sasuke could feel it, and, judging by the look on the hokage's face, she didn't know what it was, either.

"What the hell…?" Tsunade muttered.

Ten seconds later, the rumble grew stronger, and another person came tearing into the room. Both of their gazes flicked toward a chuunin, who couldn't be much older than Sasuke himself. Blood spattered his olive green flak jacket. Blood that may or may not have been his.

"We're being attacked!" the chuunin yelled. "It's the White Zetsu army! There's hundreds, no thousands of them!"

Sasuke smirked. Tsuande ignored him.

"I'll deal with you later," she hissed, her expression set in a frown.

Sasuke's smirk remained. Now she and the other kages had a much bigger problem to deal with. Still, that didn't answer his question.

How exactly had he gotten here?

-

The second Akira felt the earth begin to shake, she knew it couldn't be good.

The White Zetsus were attacking—all of them.

The camp containing the Allied Shinobi Forces was just around the corner, and, judging by what Akira could sense, most of the Zetsu weren't going after the kages. They were after the camp. Nonetheless, there were a few of them in the building.

She was lucky enough to still be with Kakashi when they ran into one, which the copy ninja swiftly took out with his Kamui. The attack sapped his energy, but Akira was there to catch him.

"It's happening." The Hyuuga girl nodded as she poured chakra into Kakashi via his shoulders while he knelt on the ground. "Madara's attacking."

Akira activated her byakugan and glanced around. Indeed, there were thousands of them, and they were killing shinobi left and right.

"The kages are already on their way out to give orders," Akira stated. Their presences were already on their way to the camp. "I'm sure they'll want you there, too. Tsunade wanted you in charge of a squadron. I'll find my way to the medical troupe."

"Thanks, Akira." Chakra now restored, Kakashi stood back to his feet. "Which direction are they in?"

"Just follow the kages. You can't miss them."

Kakashi gave her a slight nod, and, with that, he was off.

As Akira watched his presence disappear from sight, another detail crossed her mind—not Naruto, who she knew would be safe with Killer B, but Sasuke.

She didn't know exactly where he was, but she knew he was in the building, too. Frankly, Tsunade hadn't told her where exactly he was, and she didn't have time to scan each person with her byakugan.

_He's already secure,_  Akira told herself, but something in her didn't believe it. As much as she didn't like it, there was nothing she could do. The most she could do now was find the medical tent and participate there.

-

Kakashi bolted through the nearest exit, which happened to be a window, only to see Killer B and Naruto, both activated in their brightly-colored beast modes and looking ready to fight.

"Kakashi-sensei!" the blonde called. Kakshi turned. "What's going on?"

"Madara's attacking again! This time with even more!" His gaze flicked to Killer B. The rapper must have released Naruto right after the attack. It was against orders, but Kakashi was certainly glad he'd done it.

"And the kages?" Naruto inquired.

"Already on their way."

"It's okay-o, Naruto," Killer B said, repeating a previous line. "Whatever this Madara has in store, you and I can take it."

But, it appeared he'd spoken too soon.

They made it to the shinobi camp, somehow. For once it seemed Naruto and B were not Madara's targets, but rather everyone else was. Kakashi could smell it, the death all around. Many shinobi had already fallen from the surprise attack.

"What the hell is Madara's plan if he isn't after us anymore?" Naruto questioned, also noting the obvious lack of attacks directed at them.

"I don't know," Kakashi admitted, but his question was quickly answered.

A familiar chakra presence sprang to life on everyone's radar. The three of them in particular looked up to see Madara in the distance, dressed in his new black cloak and most recent mask, standing in the highest place the camp would allow: the flagpole atop the kage's tent. None of the kages were in there, but the area looked grand enough to be reserved for them.

He started executing hand signs. They were too far away to hear him speak, but with his sharingan, Kakashi could read his lips.

"I may not be able to complete the Moon's Eye Plan without the Kyuubi and the Hachibi," Kakashi read, "but I can still do this?" He ended the sentence with a question, despite that not having been Madara's exact tone. Kakashi wasn't entirely sure what he meant, but he soon found out. The ground began to shake again, but not from the White Zetsu.

"Summoning jutsu!" Madara jumped to the ground, one of his gloves missing and his right hand pressed to the ground. With no one to stop him, creatures began to appear one by one in puffs of gray smoke—it was the biju.

"No way…" Naruto's eyes were wide. First, Shukaku. Kakashi could only imagine how Gaara felt, seeing that from an outsider's perspective. Then the two tails. Three. Four. Five. Six. And Seven.

They were doomed. Combined with the White Zetsus, this was going to be a bloodbath.

As if it were planned, several of the White Zetsus turned from the shinobi they were attacking and began heading for Naruto and B.

"He's probably sending them to attack you two so you can't help with fighting the other biju!" Kakashi warned. His sharingan spun, emphasizing his words. He didn't have long to explain, because Naruto and B already had to defend themselves.

A clump of White Zetsus, probably four or five of them, tackled B from all directions, even below. The jinchuriki's knives came out, balanced in different places on his body, including his mouth. Within seconds, the Kumo nin set to work on slicing anything that dared lay a hand on him.

Naruto spun a rasengan with a clone he summoned, and, before Kakashi could see anymore, one of the White Zetsus attacked him head on. Kakashi dodged the attack and whipped out a kunai.

_They can likely also use a portion of the first hokage's technique,_ Kakashi thought, reminding himself of Tsunade's words. It felt a bit like fighting Yamato.

"Kakashi, go! Get to the kages!" Naruto yelled. "B and I will be fine here!" But, just as he spoke, another White Zetsu approached him from behind, and Naruto didn't realize it. The copy nin opened his mouth to warn him, but his words fell short. Worse yet, he didn't have enough time use his mangekyou.

The strike was just about to land, but the White Zetsu stopped. Kakashi didn't understand what had happened, and neither did Naruto. The White Zetsu split in half, and it wasn't until both pieces of the plant creature fell to the ground that Kakashi laid eyes on a familiar figure holding a blade. Lightning surrounded him, and it wasn't from Kakashi.

"Sasuke?!" By now, Naruto had turned around. His eyes were wide. Even B took notice of the young Uchiha, but another barrage of White Zetsus quickly distracted him, disallowing any time to process.

Three White Zetsus turned to attack Sasuke. Without having to raise his blade, lightning surrounding the Uchiha crackled once again and the resulting shockwave knocked his attackers back.

"How did you escape?" Kakashi demanded, but rather than being able to interrogate the boy standing still, he was forced to block another attack from a stray Zetsu before catapulting over another and landing on a third.

Sasuke chuckled, but this time his smile wasn't insane as it had been before.

"I finally figured it out," he said, and Kakashi couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, confused by the boy's words, "why I'm here."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Naruto interjected. His clone from the last rasengan had already dissipated, likely to save chakra. Despite the fight, his eyes were on Sasuke.

"It was Itachi." For a moment, Kakashi feared he may have been conscious during Akira's little reunion with the boy's brother. "It was Itachi," he said again, "who defeated Kabuto. He believed in Naruto enough to give him some of his power to defeat Kabuto and thus defend Konoha."

"And what about it?" Kakashi countered, pushing the boy to find out more. Surely, if he knew about Akira, he would have mentioned it by now.

"He knocked me out," Sasuke continued, shuffling back to avoid a White Zetsu attack, then slicing the thing with his blade when it charged forward again, "in order to do it."

_How is this any different from how Itachi treated you your entire life?_  Kakashi wondered, but knew better than to actually say.

"If Itachi believed in Naruto enough to save me, enough to save the village, then perhaps I can, too."

"That doesn't answer my question as to how you escaped." If Kakashi had been able to catch Sasuke's glance, he would have frowned. "You could still be working with Madara."

Sasuke said nothing and threw his blade in Kakashi's direction, but not with the intention to strike his former teacher. The weapon hit a White Zetsu approaching Kakashi from behind that Kakashi hadn't sensed. Kakashi used his kunai to slice another Zetsu attempting the same thing, only this time, he was ready.

"A chuunin came in to warn Tsunade about the Zetsu attack," Sasuke said, rushing forward to retrieve his sword then continue slicing before any other White Zetsu could get to it. "I managed to catch his gaze and control him to let me out after Tsunade left."

"Granny must've been too concerned with the attack," Naruto murmured, his mind connecting the pieces.

"Guess we don't have choice," Kakashi sighed, simultaneously dodging another Zetsu attack.

"I'm willing to help on one condition." Kakashi waited, expecting something big. Then, Sasuke said, "I want to be the one to fight Madara."

"Eh?"

"He's one of the people who helped destroy my clan. Unlike Itachi, he enjoyed it," Sasuke stated, his expression stoic. "He may have told me the truth about Itachi, but the Uchiha clan can never be purified as long as he survives."

"You can't fight him alone Sasuke!"

"Watch me." The Uchiha's crimson eyes narrowed. Kakashi resisted the urge to sigh again.

"He's right, Sasuke," Kakashi seconded. This time he threw a kunai at a White Zetsu's head to stop it from fully emerging from the ground. "I'm sure Naruto will be happy to let you to deliver the finishing blow, but you can't fight Madara alone."

Kakashi executed the hand signs for his raikiri and charged at another cluster of Zetsus, successfully killing each one within proximity. "I won't stop you, but you have to let Naruto come with you."

The Uchiha scoffed, but he didn't protest.

"Then I guess this means we're coming with you to find the kages?" Naruto guessed, his expression hopeful. All eyes turned to B next, who had been surprisingly quiet throughout the conversation.

"I'll be fine here, Naruto," the jinchuriki assured, "Bro will certainly want to give me the iron claw for allowing both of us to be separated again, but go fight the big bad dude. I have faith in you, man!"

Sasuke's expression remained stoic, but Naruto brightened.

"Thanks, B!"

With that, the men of Team Seven were off. They reached the kages in a matter of minutes, but, needless to say, no one was happy to see Sasuke.

"What the  _hell_  is he doing here?!" The raikage bellowed. He turned to the hokage, his face in a furious glare. "Tsunade! I thought you said you captured this criminal!"

"She did. I escaped."

"Why you..." Both the raikage's tone and his chakra bubbled with rage.

"He's agreed to help us fight Madara," Kakashi explained. "Naruto will be with him at all times."

"And me!" All eyes turned as another figure approached them, a figure with chin-length pink. Their former red-clad teammate now donned black clothes beneath her standard olive green flak jacket. Mifune, the only non-kage, was, at best, confused.

"Sakura!" Tsunade did not sound pleased. "I told you to go to the medical tents and help the wounded!"

"I sensed your chakra, Sasuke-kun," she said, turning to the Uchiha. "I don't know if I'll be able to forgive you yet for all you've done, but if you're going to fight Madara with Naruto, I want to help."

No one said anything. Screams of chaos echoed throughout the area. The kages needed to organize as soon as possible.

"This is preposterous—" the tsuchikage began, but Sasuke cut him off, too.

"I've been training with Madara for the last three months," he informed, his tone deadpan. "I know his weaknesses, or at least I know them better than any of you, who have only fought him since this invasion began."

"Kakashi, you seem awfully convinced of this boy's new intentions despite him trying to kill you multiple times," the mizukage remarked, hand on her hip and her only visible green eye narrowed suspiciously.

"He's had plenty of chances to kill me and try to capture Naruto or the eight-tails since escaping," Kakashi explained, although his tone was far more respectful than Sasuke's had been. "If he was going to try anything, he would have done it by now. It was only since after his fight with Kabuto that Sasuke decided to reconsider his values."

Nobody looked happy about it, but no one could think of a valid counter argument, either.

"Every team needs a healer," the mizukage spoke up, stepping forward so that she was closer to the hokage. "If I recall, Tsunade, you were the one to advocate for this policy in your youth."

The hokage looked away, probably remembering Dan, who had been one of her main supporters. But time was wasting, and they needed to move.

"We'll take care of the biju," Tsunade decided, and although the raikage especially did not look pleased, he didn't argue. "Kakashi, your team has already been decided. I will instruct you as we go along."

"Yes, hokage-sama."

"And, Naruto…" she trailed off. The boy met her gaze with hopeful blue eyes. "Be careful."

-

From the moment Akira reached the medical tent, she knew this was not going to be an easy time. She used her byakugan to avoid any major Zetsu attacks on the way, but now life was about to get interesting, and not in the fun way. Not that treating injured or dying people was at all fun, but work here was going to be dissatisfying at best with how many wounded were coming in.

"Akira!" Shizune's tone greeted the Hyuuga girl the second she walked in. "I'm so glad to see you! We could really use your help!" The hokage's assistant stood over a brown-haired chuunin. He was covered in burns, likely a victim in some sort of explosion or a fire jutsu gone wrong.

With the biju attacking, there were so many people in critical condition, even more than when the invasion began.

At Shizune's instruction, Akira set to work in one of the more neglected corners of the room. She didn't recognize her first patient immediately, but the second she leaned in to further view his injuries, she knew—through the multiple sets of broken bones, including both arms and legs, that tell-tale chestnut hair, and most of all that chakra.

_This is one of Danzou's underlings._  One of the ones who had tried to kill her and would have been successful, too, if not for Neji. Akira glanced at the stretcher beside him. Sure enough, his Aburame friend was there, too.

She didn't know anything about them aside from who they worked for and what they had tried to do, and now it was her job to heal them. But, before her hesitation could become apparent, another nurse chimed in.

"Be careful not to touch that man's skin!" Makoto's youngest sister Megumi spoke up as she healed a Suna woman two stretchers over. "That dark-haired man is an Aburame, and his skin is poisonous!"

Akira remembered, but she dared not say it, which left her with two choices: move onto another patient and let these two be treated by someone else and possibly die, or disregard her feelings and do her job.

Akira's face set in a determined expression as her hands lit up with healing chakra.

Who was she kidding? Friends, enemies—it didn't matter. These people needed help and that was exactly what she was going to do.

-

"Stick to your formations, people!" the tsuchikage barked. "The only chance we have at winning this war is if we all work together!"

Intelligence was already working with Yamanaka Inoichi at the helm on a method to seal the beasts, even if it was only temporary. They didn't have time to find compatible human vessels at this point. They would have to think of something else and fast.

Kakashi was in charge of the Third Division short-to-mid-range battle division. To match with their abilities, the Kumo ninja Darui was in charge of the First Division mid-range battle division, and Iwa ninja Kitsuchi was in charge of the Second Division short-range battle tactics.

Shizune supervised the Medical Division, where Kakashi was confident Akira had managed to successfully join. Not having Sakura there would certainly be a disadvantage, but if she could help keep Naruto and Sasuke alive during their fight against Madara, all would be worth it.

The Kiri ninja Ao, one of the mizukage's bodyguards if Kakashi remembered correctly, was in charge of the sensor division. They were mostly assigned to fight the remaining White Zetsus and prevent any more surprise attacks.

Kankuro, at Gaara's request, was in charge of the Surprise Attack Division, which would be especially important in sealing the biju once they managed to figure out a way, assuming they actually could. But, among all of the intelligence squadrons of the five villages, Kakashi had a feeling they would think of something.

Unsurprisingly, Gaara stood command of the Fourth Divison's long range attacks, his proxy being Nara Shikamaru, who was nothing but helpful when it came to long range attacks thanks to his clan's shadow possession jutsu.

The last and final division, Fifth Division, specifically named the Special Attack Division, the samurai leader Mifune was in charge of. It mostly consisted of samurai and any descent swordsmen the five villages had to offer, excluding those already assigned to other divisions, such as Omoi and Karui, who Kakashi remembered painfully from Sai's description of when Naruto had taken a serious beating.

Considering he was most familiar with it, Gaara's Long Range Division was in charge of subduing Shukaku, the one-tailed demon. The kazekage had been especially solemn in expressing his desire to do so, and no one argued.

The raikage led the attack on the two-tailed demon Matabi, along with Darui's First Division and Killer B, who had been discovered after decimating any White Zetsu he could find.

There had been some squabbling on where to put Killer B in all this, but it was agreed as quickly as possible that he worked best with the raikage. If they were successful quickly, they would be able to assist any other division in need.

In turn, the Iron Daimyo's Special Attack Division and the mizukage claimed the three-tails Isobu, formerly sealed in Akatsuki-controlled yondaime mizukage. Likely, the current mizukage wanted to even the score.

Kakashi's division, to break up the consistent village-biju mold, was assigned the four-tails Son Goku. For this, Kakashi was especially grateful to have Gai on his side, even without ninjutsu. Luckily enough, Lee was in his group, too.

The tsuchikage and Kitsuchi's Second Division claimed the five-tails Kokuo, another former beast of Iwagakure, once again going to with mold of matching villages and biju.

Tsunade and a portion of Ao's sensor division claimed the six-tails Saiken. With the biju being a slug, it made sense for Tsunade to claim that one, despite the biju being initially sealed in the Kiri ninja Utakata.

Lastly, Kankuro's Surprise Attack Division was in charge of subduing the seven-tails Choumei. There was no one from Takigakure in their midst, but, based on the knowledge they had, the kages were especially conscious of this biju's unique ability to fly.

The most they could do was pick off each of Madara's weapons. Sadly, the man knew a thing about how to divide and conquer. Hopefully, their efforts would be enough to assist the newly united Team Seven in defeating Madara.

_But for the time being,_  Kakashi thought,  _we are to subdue our assigned beasts by any means necessary._

-

A part of Sasuke couldn't believe this was actually happening. Admittedly, a part of him had always known he would fight Madara, preferably to the death, in order to cleanse the Uchiha name, but he never thought it would be like this, and he certainly hadn't anticipated it to be this soon.

On the way to find Madara, Sasuke informed them of everything he could think of regarding the man. His space-time ninjutsu, teleportation abilities and, most of all, the amount of time he could turn intangible.

_"Objects can only pass through him for five minutes,"_ Sasuke had told them.  _"So any attack executed directly after that amount of time will affect him. Madara cannot be allowed any time to recover."_

Hopefully, they would listen.

Sakura had barely said a word to him since they'd taken off, aside from the occasional "Hm" or "Roger" as he discussed what he knew about Madara's abilities. She spoke when they exchanged ideas and settled on a strategy, but her demeanor was strictly professional. To her credit, the girl certainly cried a lot less than Sasuke thought she would since being around him again.

Now, here they were. It had been surprisingly easy to find Madara. Almost too easy, like he was waiting for them. Considering the man, he probably had.

Madara hadn't strayed far from the kage's tent since releasing the biju on the unsuspecting victims of the Allied Shinobi Forces camp, which only reinforced Sasuke's theory that Madara was waiting for them.

"Well, well, well…." Tobi sounded amused as the three of them skidded to a stop beneath the cliff where he stood, looking down on them both literally and figuratively. "If it isn't the new sannin."

Both the man's sharingan and his newly transplanted rinnegan were clearly visible. Something about the differing colors sent chills up Sasuke's spine. Not that he felt scared—it was just odd.

Their current battleground was rocky and mountainous, unlike the grassy and much flatter terrain of the camp area. There were a lot more places to get hurt around here.

Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto stood in a line with Sakura in the middle. They exchanged looks and a then brief nod, which turned into each of them biting their thumbs and kneeling to the ground.

"Summoning jutsu!"

A toad. A slug. A snake. All of their summons were gigantic, just like Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru's. Madara jumped down from his perch on the cliff, revealing the Gunbai Uchiwa fan he'd been hiding behind his back: the true Uchiha Madara's trademark weapon.

Sasuke couldn't help but smirk as his eyes formed the six-sided star of his Amaterasu. Susanoo materialized around him as Naruto's tailed beast chakra glowed yellow. In turn, Sakura's byakugou seal formed a diamond on her forehead before spreading rapidly across the rest of her face.

"And so it begins." Madara grinned menacingly.

-

"This man is stable!" Akira called. The nurse beside her, a reddish blonde named Gina, nodded in acknowledgement as Akira moved onto the next unattended patient.

Akira couldn't remember how many people that had been. They'd lost a good number to grievous injuries and a few unexplained causes, but they'd been able to rescue others.

Those with less grievous injuries were in one part of the tent, sorted by injury type and level of severity, while the more life-threatening cases were nearer to where Akira was in what most would call an "Intensive Care Unit." Thankfully, with medics from all five major villages, they weren't short-staffed, but Konoha medics typically knew the most, thanks to Tsunade's influence.

Her next patient was a man from Kumo with short black hair and a blue hitiate worn like a bandana, which clashed with the white tattered Kumo flak jacket. A projectile from one of the biju had stabbed him clean through, gradually staining his white clothing red.

Akira heard from one of the field medics that Naruto was fighting Madara. That much hadn't surprised her until the medic added that Sakura and  _Sasuke_  accompanied him.

At first, her mind rejected the notion. Had the boy really changed his ways so quickly? He'd teamed up with Naruto during his fight with Kabuto, which was certainly a step in the right direction, but one fight didn't fully explain the boy's sudden change of heart. Had he even changed at all? Did he and Madara have something else planned?

Now finished healing the Kumo shinobi, Akira moved onto another man covered in blood with severe head trauma. But even with healing chakra pouring through her fingers, Akira's mind raced.

Sasuke had been unconscious when she arrived at the cave, but he could have briefly seen his brother before passing out. Naruto had turned into Itachi—assuming Sasuke's change of heart was genuine, had it really just taken a glimpse of his brother's face to repaint the boy's heart a brighter color?

It was certainly meant more than hearing stories from a man that nobody trusted. Maybe he really had changed.

Hearing battle updates was a bit less disturbing for Akira after that, especially those involving the newly united Team Seven. The biju continued to wreak havoc around them, but a barrier team outside the hospital managed to keep them guarded with a group jutsu.

One of the former members from Sasuke's team, Karin, even escaped her imprisonment to come help them. The situation began unpleasantly, considering the break out and a bit with the girl complaining that she didn't just want to sit and rot in a jail cell like Juugo and Suigetsu, but Karin had continued to say that since a Leaf konoichi had saved her life, she was willing to help, too.

Through some miracle, Shizune complied, although Akira did catch the woman whispering to another nearby nurse to keep an eye on the redhead, who Akira found out shortly after was of Uzumaki heritage.

Karin's heal bite jutsu in particular was a huge help in healing some of their more critical cases. It took a massive tax on the Uzumaki girl's chakra, but one of the other nurses, one from Kumo no less, allowed Karin some of her chakra so that she could keep going. After that, things ran smoothly until their next unexpected visitor—a visitor far more alarming than Karin.

A hooded figure entered the area, and at first no one thought anything of it. Just another ninja mostly covered up due to some injury or a bloodline limit. Then someone recognized the intruder's chakra, and everything stopped.

"Kabuto…" Akira breathed. Sure enough, there he was, wearing that odd hooded cloak with the red snake-like eyes.

All heads, or at least those that could, turned to the man entering the massive tent. Shizune was the first to take action, throwing a cloud of poisoned senbon she'd been storing Kami only knew where. He deflected the needles with ease using his navel snake and proceeded to slither toward the nearest unattended patient.

Akira's mind reeled even more than during the field medic's revelation about Sasuke.

How had he escaped Itachi's illusion?

No one moved as Kabuto stepped closer to the unattended patient. With both his legs broken, although he couldn't move, he tried to. He was a leaf chuunin, probably in his late twenties, with fear written plainly on his face as he attempted to wriggle away, but to no avail.

Akira was in the middle of sealing a wound on her current patient's midsection and risked letting him bleed to death if she stopped. Most of the nurses around her were in similar situations, and those who weren't froze with fear.

Kabuto's hands lit up with chakra, but it was green. The chuunin with two broken legs braced for an attack that never came. Instead, the snake-like creature was healing him.

A collective sigh sounded throughout the area.

Kabuto had decided to help them, and they didn't have the time to argue why.

_Itachi must have changed him, too._ Akira shook her head as a small smile formed on her lips. She'd initially considered Kabuto beyond helping with how much he'd willingly deformed his mind and body to become more like the corrupt snake sannin. Clearly, she was wrong. Even people like him had the capacity to change, even if it took a massive genjutsu to gain perspective. Whatever truth Kabuto learned through Izanami had led to a positive conclusion.

Karin especially disliked the idea of working with Kabuto again. Itachi's knowledge told Akira that he'd been one of the main people to torture the girl amid Orochimaru's crazy array of science experiments using human test subjects.

At this, Akira felt a pang of sympathy for the Uzumaki. Frankly, she wasn't the only one who resented the idea of working with Kabuto. But, after exhausting herself from yet another heal bite and having no one available to help restore her chakra, the redhead capitulated.

-

Kakashi panted as he surveyed the area, the tomoe of his sharingan spinning and his chakra reserves drained. He'd already used Kamui twice without any sort of chakra replenishment. Saying he was completely exhausted would be an understatement.

None of the ninjutsu or even genjutsu had worked so far on this thing. Kisame had somehow managed to beat this demon's jinchuriki, but Kakashi had no idea how.

Out of the twenty-five men and women assigned to him, fifteen ninja were left standing, including himself. Six of them were already dead, for sure. Out of the remaining four missing in action, a field medic had come in to transfer two of their injured to the medical tent, and the other two were still on the battleground, either unconscious, dead, or close to it.

This was a nightmare. Even worse than he'd imagined.

_Come on, intelligence,_ Kakashi thought, sweat brimming his brow as he concentrated, his natural eye still closed. There had to be something they could do. Anything.

"Kakashi!" As if he could sense the man's emotions, his longtime rival spoke up, flashing him a shining smile followed by a thumbs up. "Do not lose heart! We will win this battle yet!"

Kakashi wished he could agree with the man. Gai and Lee remained alive, but that wouldn't last long if they didn't think of something fast. Kakashi wasn't afraid to die, he just didn't wish for any of them to die in vain.

And, somehow, his wish was granted.

"Kakashi!" a new voice, but not one that was human, appeared. Kakashi's gaze descended to the ground to see a smaller version of Katsuyu.

"Please tell me this is good news," the copy ninja said, fighting to keep his tone from wavering.

"The Intelligence team has come up with a way to seal the bests!"

_Oh thank, Kami._  Although it wasn't anything concrete, at least it was something.

"How does it work?" Kakashi inquired.

The slug started retching. Although Gai drew back at the sight, Kakashi understood immediately. The retching continued for another few seconds before the slug threw up, of all things, a scroll.

"This should work, at least for now!" Katsuyu said. "The beast has to stay in one place for three minutes for the seal to work properly."

"Three minutes?!" Kakashi echoed, his surprise evident.

There was no way. What technique could anyone possibly have that would work against a biju for that long? But, rather than expressing this, Kakashi simply nodded and recovered with his next words.

"What are the seals required?"

As Katsuyu told him, Kakashi was also relieved to find that, as long as there were more than three people present to donate chakra, the sealing process would work. It wasn't meant to be permanent, but, in the least, it wouldn't cost anyone his or her life like it had with the Fourth hokage.

"I will tell the others," Kakashi promised.

"And another thing!" Kakashi almost didn't want to hear the slug's words, but, once it spoke, Kakashi was glad he did. "I'm here to help heal your injured! I can only help one at a time, but who would you say is in the most critical state?"

_Leave it to Tsunade._ Although he couldn't show it visibly, considering the ongoing battle, a huge part of him was relieved.

"Those two men back there," Kakashi replied, pointing to their fallen comrades. At least one of which was still breathing, judging by all the squirming he had been doing. "Thank you."

"Happy to help!" the slug replied and then disappeared into said direction.

Kakashi turned back to the rest of his team. They were scattered, but if he talked loudly enough, they should be able to hear him.

"Everyone!" Kakashi called, and those who physically could turned to listen. "You're going to want to hear this…"

-

A scream in the form of a battle cry tore through the air as Sakura Haruno punched the ground, causing earth and rock to split and fly in all directions. Madara stood mere meters away, his gunbai ready to absorb the chakra from her attack. But, rather than give him the chakra to turn the energy from her punch into a wind attack, she directed her anger to the ground and allowed the environment to do the fighting for her.

They still hadn't managed to attack him consecutively for five minutes. No matter what the three of them attempted, they just couldn't get close enough.

Naruto stood on his toad and formed the hand sign for another kage bunshin, which, when it attacked, even in perfect tandem with Sasuke, Madara avoided them with ease and teleported away long enough to recover.

"This isn't working," Sakura growled. Every strategy they used had fallen flat, and the three of them could not afford to lose this battle.

Sasuke performed the hand sign for a fire jutsu, his sharignan tracing Madara's movement. Just as the man reappeared where his sharignan predicted, Sasuke released his fury in the form of the Uchiha's clan's prized Gougakyuu no jutsu. Although Madara had been standing in the middle of the giant fireball, he remained unharmed.

That it, until Sasuke activated his Amaterasu on top of it. It was slight, but the edge of the man's uniform caught fire until he teleported again.

_That's it,_  Sasuke thought, smiling to himself. He had to tell Naruto and Sakura.

The Uchiha called her name. With her slug summons, she could get the message to Naruto without him having to yell their strategy for Madara to hear. Thankfully, she heard him, and within seconds, the pink-haired girl was by his side.

"What?" Her jade-colored eyes glinted in annoyance, but at least she was there.

"I have an idea."

She looked surprised as he explained it to her.

"Are you sure that will work?" Her expression turned quizzical.

"No," he answered honestly. But if anyone could pull it off, it was Naruto.

"Okay then…" Jumping into the air toward the spiky-haired blonde, she obeyed and passed the message onto Naruto.

To ensure the elder Uchiha remained distracted, Sasuke used a lightning jutsu, which bounced off the man's gunbai like any other attack. The fan converted his lightning into wind chakra, serving as both the perfect shield and defense. Then Sasuke had to dodge.

The younger Uchiha kept this up as long as he could, shoving attack after attack. He couldn't maintain the constant attacks for five minutes straight, but that was where Naruto came in, along with three of his clones and a blade-wielding toad.

The toad slashed at the much smaller man, an attack that would have landed had Madara not gone intangible. Naruto's clones attempted an attack from behind, but Madara struck them both before they could touch him. The clones dissipated into chakra-filled clouds of smoke.

Next came Sakura, using one of the few remaining cliffs as leverage to spring toward them, but she too passed through the man. She recovered quickly, landing on her feet in a defensive stance before charging back in to throw another set of punches. All of them missed, and, with a single swipe of his weapon, Tobi's converted wind jutsu crashed Sakura into the opposing cliff side.

Their time was almost up. Now it was Sasuke's turn.

He charged in headfirst. An oddly Naruto-like move, all things considered. Lightning dancing off his blade in blue streaks of electricity. Even if Madara dodged everything, it would be worth it, because…

The Uchiha trailed off his thought process, but smirked when he saw Naruto, the real Naruto, along with one of his clones, approaching the elder Uchiha from the rear.

Sasuke pushed the evil man back with a final surge of lightning. Madara fell into the two glowing yellow figures, but, rather than passing through them, he was solid. Not wasting a second, Naruto, likely the clone, pulled the man into a full nelson and the other jumped into the air, landing on the cliff above them.

Five minutes was up. They didn't have long to act, and anything they did now had to count.

Next came Sakura, who recovered quickly from her crash into the cliff side thanks to the stored chakra from her forehead marking. She sped toward the former Akatsuki leader, her fist raised, while Naruto kept him grounded there.

Her arm cocked back. Both of Tobi's eyes widened, but he had no chance of pulling her into an illusion, because she wasn't looking anywhere near his eyes. Her target was just below the man's sternum, which the pink-haired kunoichi struck with all her might.

"SHANAROOOO!"

The clone holding the Uchiha burst into a cloud of smoke from the force of the hit. This time it Madara went crashing into the opposite cliff side. His mask cracked ever so slightly near the top, but Sasuke didn't care enough to see the man's face. He just wanted him dead.

Naruto spun another beast mode rasengan as he waited above where the elder landed. Before Madara could think about recovering, Sasuke sheathed his blade and did the same with his chidori as he and Naruto charged for the same target.

Once again, it hit. Dust and debris flew in every direction, even more so than when Sakura had punched the ground. By the time everything cleared, Madara slumped against the wall of the canyon. An impact circle surrounded his figure.

"Sasuke-kun! Naruto-kun!"

Out of habit, Sasuke turned to see what was going on. His attention drew to a small slug that had latched itself onto the pink-haired girl's shoulder: a slug that she hadn't summoned.

"Almost all of the beasts have been temporary sealed!" she revealed, her expression jovial. "All remaining forces are pooling to take down the last one!"

"Which is it?" Naruto inquired. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

Of course, the dobe would be curious about that irrelevant detail…

"The five tails!"

Sasuke's lips twisted into a cocky smile as he redrew his sword and pointed it at the elder Uchiha. With one more additional step, Sasuke drew close enough to hold the blade to the man's throat.

"Hear that, Madara?" Sasuke taunted. "Your army failed, and the biju are all but finished."

The man chuckled. The younger Uchiha frowned. Judging by Naruto's silence behind him, his former teammate didn't like the sound of it, either.

"I'm not done yet!" the Uchiha declared, and, with gloved hands, formed a final hand sign. He began to teleport, which would have been an instantaneous sight for anyone without the sharingan. But, thanks to his kekki genkai, Sasuke witnessed the event in slow motion, and, before Madara could fully disappear, Sasuke activated Amaterasu.

The flames teleported into the portal with him, and, when he reappeared, the black flames on his uniform noticeably startled him. Sakura seized the moment to attack the man one last time. Some of the black fire got on her gloves when she sent the Uchiha flying. To stop the girl from losing her hand, Sasuke extinguished the fire.

Their enemy, on the other hand, lay face down on the ground, onyx tongues still consuming his figure.

"Yes, you are," Sasuke retorted, and, with a final glare, the black flames flared and ate what was left of the man more hungrily.

The three of them stood there in silence for what felt like forever. Even after there was nothing left to observe, they lingered. Then, Sakura spoke.

"So, is he… gone?" she managed.

Neither he nor Naruto replied. Naruto formed a hand sign and closed his eyes to concentrate. Sasuke knew he was a shit sensor, but he'd mentioned something about being able to sense negative intent, which was probably what he was doing.

The jinchuriki opened his eyes, and then deactivated his beast mode. He looked like the old Naruto again, although his clothes were far more tattered.

"He's gone," the blonde confirmed, and Sakura let out a yelp of victory. "I don't sense a thing."

Each of their summons disappeared in a puff of smoke.

By the time they returned to the village, the last biju had been effectively sealed. The tsuchikage floated in the air, actually seeming at an average person's height for once. He clutched the final sealing scroll with a triumphant look on his face.

-

It felt surreal when Akira the news.

Madara was defeated. Team Seven had done it, and the Allied Shinobi Forces had successfully sealed all of the tailed demons. The White Zetsus even ceased their attacks and were retreating.

Whoops of celebration sounded around the medical tent, overwhelming the cries of pain from those still suffering. Shizune yelled at a few people to get back to work, but even she smiled.

"I can't believe they did it," Karin muttered beside her. With her chakra practically depleted, she'd resorted to helping Akira wrap bandages. She certainly complained a lot, but she knew what she was doing.

"Naruto-kun is the best!" Akira recognized Makoto's other sister Aya this time, as she grinned with a dreamy look on her face.

"Enough!" Shizune called, and somehow, the room went silent. "I need some of you to go out and help the wounded who haven't been transported here."

_And to help with some of the dead,_  Akira knew she also meant, but had the discretion not to say. Through some miracle, Akira was assigned to one of these groups. Along with a Kumo kunoichi named Ran and a Suna girl named Ameno, the three of them headed to the main source of the action.

The teams were intermingled now. Most of the injured gathered in one area, making it easier for medical teams such as theirs. Akira couldn't remember how many medics were sent out in groups of three like them—half a dozen at least. Kabuto and Karin remained in medical tent, where Shizune could keep an eye on them.

Upon their arrival to the scene, any joy Akira felt at their victory was short-lived as she surveyed the carnage around them. The first person Akira recognized was Hinata, but her heart only dropped further when she recognized a limp Neji Hyuuga in her arms.

Momentarily forgetting her mission, Akira bolted over, earning her an annoyed, "Hey!" from the Kumo kunoichi named Ran.

Akira hadn't heard her as she elbowed her way through the crowd only to sink to her knees beside the sobbing Hyuuga girl. Multiple stakes of wood, undoubtedly from a White Zetsu, impaled the Hyuuga boy through his chest. There were more than Akira could count. She searched for any signs of life, any sort of hope that Neji might have survived, but she found none.

He was gone.

"H-he saved me," Hinata stuttered between sobs. "T-this is my fault…"

Sorrow gripped her heart, but Akira said nothing as she placed a hand on Hinata's shoulder. The girl had already been forced to wait far too long to grieve for her cousin. She didn't need to deal with another person's hysterics right now. Nonetheless, tears slipped down Akira's cheeks, as well.

Wiping her eyes on a pastel-colored sleeve, Akira gave Hinata's shoulder a final squeeze before rejoining her temporary team. And, after seeing what had happened, neither of them questioned a thing.

_First Itachi, and now Neji…_  Akira didn't want to know who was next.

Clearly, she hadn't been the only one to lose someone that day. Countless shinobi wailed in pain over loved ones bodies, as Hinata had been. Some were celebrating, but far more ninja were mourning.

Akira discovered another devastating loss when she visited Kakashi's squadron. Although she hadn't known the individual particularly well, both Kakashi and Lee had.

Gai-sensei lay motionless on the ground, eyes rolled to the back of his head and expression forever sealed in a look of rage. Lee sobbed over his body while Tenten knelt beside him, looking broken as well. Akira didn't know if they knew about Neji yet, but she knew it wouldn't help.

In order to keep the four tails in place long enough to seal him, Gai had opened the eighth gate, and, as the man's father had once done, or so Kakashi told her in passing, he died saving his comrades. They hadn't been the first to seal their biju, but they hadn't been the last, either.

It made sense now. It made why Itachi had become a pacifist, despite his need to continue fighting. Itachi had been four when he was first been exposed to these kinds of horrors. Akira was almost in her twenties and nothing could have prepared her for something like this.

With a hand on her stomach and her thoughts elsewhere, Akira took another long look at what peace had cost them.

-

Something rustled. Cloth probably. Everything hurt as mismatched eyes opened, finding only darkness, save for a single, tri-colored face of black, white, and green with glowing yellow eyes. Somehow amid it all, Tobi found his voice.

"How am I alive?" It felt like a repeat of what Kisame had said to him, but Tobi said it anyway. It felt like he'd been crushed by that boulder and put back together all over again.

The Uchiha couldn't remember the last time he'd been in this much pain. They'd failed. The Mooneye Plan, the biju, Kabuto—even Sasuke.

Beside him, Tobi hadn't noticed at first, but Kisame was there, halfway across the room, lying unconscious on the same stretcher he'd left him on.

The shark would not be pleased when he awoke to hear about all the action he missed, but that was hardly Obito's concern right now. Zetsu, apparently the black one this time, hadn't answered his question.

"I used your idea," the creature began, "to utilize one of my white halves as a decoy. Before Sasuke caught you on fire with Amaterasu, I switched you with one of my White Clones."

"You disobeyed my orders."

"I saved your life!"

The room went silent. Then, Tobi responded.

"Thank you, Zetsu," he said quietly. He should be dead. Just like that time with the boulder, he should be dead. But he wasn't. His life was lucky in all the wrong places—the worst kind.

"The world thinks you're gone," Black Zetsu stated. His white half had been oddly silent. Probably traumatized after watching so many of his identical comrades die.

"Let them." The last thing he wanted to think about right now was the world. Thanks to his failure to complete the Mooneye Plan, he'd never get to see Rin again. Despite how much it hurt, the Uchiha rolled onto his side.

"What of the White Zetsu army?"

"We have maybe two hundred left? Dunno, didn't count. The Allied Shinobi Forces and especially the eight-tails were quite effective in taking those out."

Of course, they had been. He managed to take more than a few with him, and, in the least, that brought the man some comfort. They'd been friends for so long that the Uchiha had nearly forgotten how to be grateful.

"I wish to rest, at least for now," Tobi announced. He rolled back onto his other side to face Zetsu and at least allow the creature that iota of respect. "If you choose to go anywhere, please ensure no one who spots you remains alive."

Both Black and White Zetsu scoffed this time. The most reaction he'd gotten so far from the latter.

"You're funny," Black Zetsu deadpanned, formed a hand sign, and sank out of sight into the floor. Now, Tobi was alone, or at least as alone as he could be having to hear Kisame's shallow breathing every second.

Funny, he may be, but a shinobi had to be alive to be funny.

-

It was nearly impossible for Konohagakure to sleep that night. Between vigils for the dead, celebrations, rebuilding, no vacancy hotel rooms, and overcrowded hospitals, it seemed everyone in the Land of Fire just couldn't stay still.

Akira returned to what was left of the Hyuuga compound to find, through some miracle, Taisou was still alive.

Kaname and Eri were with Makoto's family and would likely stay there for a few days until Tsunade could transport them, along with the countless others who had lost their homes and worst of all family members, to a new temporary location.

After all her work today, Akira had been given the night off, which, to be perfectly honest, she didn't consider fully fair. Hundreds of other nurses and healers had worked just as hard as she and others were still volunteering to work the night shift.

However, with how exhausted she felt and how bad Akira knew overworking herself would be for her babies, she accepted, and the first place she found herself was back at Taisou's.

It felt like the time when she'd shown up on Kaname's doorstep, only this time, she wasn't lugging a dead body. Admittedly, she was still covered in blood. With no apartment left, she had nowhere to shower.

All she wanted to see was her family, and the second the door opened to reveal her uncle's face, she tackled the man in an embrace. For a moment, they just stood there, hugging.

So many others hadn't been this lucky. Hinata hadn't. Lee hadn't. Even Naruto. He'd gotten back Sasuke, in a sense, but there were trials the Uchiha would have to face. Akira didn't want to think about what would happen to Konoha once the truth of the Uchiha clan got out. Itachi would be rolling over in his grave.

Despite everything—all the pain, the bloodshed, and even the triumph, here she was.

This was home.


	47. Chapter 47

_It’s the oddest sensation,_ Konan thought, _to die._

It was as if she were just floating along. Yahiko and Nagato weren’t here like she’d hope, but it was peaceful. That is, until she felt a heavy weight pressed against her diaphragm. The next thing Konan knew, she was coughing up water.

She didn’t remember much after that. Just a searing pain near her ribcage where Tobi had stabbed her and the faint flicker of unfamiliar voices.

When Konan came to again, she wasn’t floating anymore. Her eyes flickered open and it took a few seconds for her blurry vision to focus again. Amber eyes darted about, taking in her surroundings.

She was in an unfamiliar place. In the very least indoors, and a bedroom by the looks of it. The lighting was dim and the scenery fairly bland, but the place she lay on the floor wasn’t lumpy and the blankets were warm.

Konan slowly sat up. A searing pain somewhere amid the spaces in her ribcage reminded her of her injury. Her shirt had been replaced completely with bandages along her upper torso, leaving her belly button exposed, and her once tight leggings were now a pair of loose-fitting navy capris.

Her piercings were gone, or at least elsewhere, something she quickly discovered upon looking down at her navel and flicking her tongue across where the metal stud beneath her lower lip used to reside. It felt especially odd to be without her lip piercing after all these years.

A soft sliding noise caught the paper kunoichi’s attention. She turned to see a door opening to her left, slightly illuminating the area.

“Oh, you’re awake!” The youthful face of a girl who couldn’t be more than sixteen or seventeen came into view. Her brown hair was long, reaching well past her waist and her eyes were a similar matching shade. And somehow, although Konan had never met the girl, she knew she meant her no harm.

“Who are you?” Konan found her voice to be deep and gravelly from misuse and elongated sleep. Exactly how long had she been here?

“My name is Tamaki,” the girl introduced. “I just came in here to change your bandages again.” She held up the roll in her hand as proof.

“Again?” Konan echoed.

Tamaki nodded. “You’ve been asleep for the past three days. We were about ready to give up hope that you’d ever wake up. Still, you’re lucky grandma found you floating in the water and knew how to revive you.”

_Lucky… right._ Konan’s lips twisted sardonically, which felt especially strange without her piercing.

“If you’d like, I could introduce you afterwards,” Tamaki offered, walking over to where Konan sat in the middle. Konan glared with mistrust, especially at the bandages, as the girl knelt down beside her.

Whether the girl meant her harm or not, Konan greatly disliked receiving medical attention from someone she hadn’t fought and bled with. It had taken her nearly a year to allow Akira even close to her, and that had only been out of absolute necessity because she was poisoned.

Sensing her discomfort, Tamaki shifted uncomfortably.  “I won’t hurt you, promise! I’ve done this tons of times,” she tried to reassure. Only after Konan tried to reach for the bandages herself and, due to her injury, failed did she allow Tamaki to do what she initially intended.

“There,” Tamaki finalized, fastening the end of the bandage. “All set.”

Konan said nothing as the girl rose to her feet and held out both hands, offering to help her up. Konan mentally kicked herself for it, but she accepted.

“You might want to lean on me for a bit while you readjust to walking,” Tamaki advised. This time, Konan ignored her. Her pride had already taken multiple hits today. She didn’t need this, too.

The paper kunoichi hobbled outside the room. Artificial light stung her eyes, especially after being in the dark for so long. An unpleasant odor assaulted her nostrils, almost as if—

“Why does it smell like cats in here?”

Tamaki was surprisingly undaunted by her flat tone and narrowed eyes, and, still smiling, replied, “Oh, that? I hope you’re not allergic. We have a lot of cats here.”

“I’ve always been more of a dog person,” Konan muttered, bitterly recalling the demise of her childhood pet Tiny.

“Well, hopefully, you’ll get used to it. It was a nightmare trying to keep them out of the room while you healed.”

In the light of the hallway, Konan felt practically naked. Not so much because all she wore on the upper half of her body was bandages, or even the baggy pants that threatened to fall off at any time—rather, it was her dire lack of makeup and the fact that her hair looked as if she had been asleep for the past three weeks, not days.

Konan’s thoughts quickly diverted as a small furry object brushed past her ankle. Then another. And another.

“Exactly how many of these things are there?” Konan questioned, eying the trio of kitties at her feet. One of which, a gray tabby, was acquainting itself with her left ankle and emitting an unmistakable purr.

To her horror, Tamaki shrugged. “Dunno. Grandma takes in strays all the time, so the numbers always change.”

Tamaki and Konan continued down the hallway toward an open doorway, where Konan sensed a rather odd presence. Many of her questions regarding the oddity of this place were answered as she walked through the doorway into a room with not just Tamaki’s grandmother, but a whole bunch more cats.

“Grandma, the mysterious lady woke up!” Tamaki called from behind her.

“Greetings,” the old woman said, “You can call me Nekobaa.”

The title was certainly fitting. Every ounce of fashion sense Konan had winced as she not only looked at the old woman’s clothes, but her hair style, as well.

Never before had Konan seen such a gaudy mix of bright orange and olive green than the woman’s clothes and the edging of her robe. A matching olive scarf, odd, considering the temperature of the room, adorned the woman’s neck, and, amid the mass of cats and the bagginess of her garment, Konan could not see her feet.

Appearance-wise, if the woman was a ninja, she hid it well. She was overweight—obese even—and her face wrinkled with old age that Konan hoped to never reach. Even more appalling were the felt cat ears adorning the woman’s head and the blackened nose Konan surmised she achieved with makeup. Her eyes were slitted, like a cat’s, although they weren’t opened widely enough for Konan to see the woman’s pupils.

Her hair was a puffed out disaster, spreading out behind her like a peacock’s tail, only dusty gray. Her left hand clutched a pipe, likely the culprit for many of her wrinkles. Especially now, Konan mentally thanked her younger self for never having taken up the unhealthy habit of smoking.

Konan didn’t bother greeting her back and thankfully she didn’t have to, because the Nekobaa started talking again.

“Welcome to the Nekobaa’s Shop, where you’ll find everything from kitty litter to kunai!” her voice, clearly strained from smoking, became surprisingly upbeat. “I see you’ve already met my granddaughter Tamaki.” Out of the corner of her eye, Konan saw Tamaki wave.

“Where exactly are we?”

“We’re the only inhabitants left on this island,” Tamaki replied. “We’re somewhere in between the Land of Waves and the Land of Fire.”

Before Konan could demand how that was possible considering she was supposed to have died in the Rain Village, Tamaki continued her story.

“Grandma was out on one of her week long fishing trips and found you floating on some rubble. She actually hit you with her boat!” Tamaki said, sounding oddly amused. “When she saw you slide into the water, she jumped in after you!”

That much at least made sense. The salt water had clogged her wounds and the rubble had saved her from drowning before this odd woman came along. It was a miracle Tobi hadn’t bothered to finish her off.

 “Can I interest you in some tea?” Next to her, the Nekobaa motioned to a steaming ceramic kettle raised on a potholder to keep it from burning the floor.

“That’s all right, I’m—”

“Tamaki!” The Nekobaa snapped, completely ignoring her. “Go grab so extra teacups for you and the nice lady!”

Without being given much choice, Konan sat down to have tea with them once Tamaki returned from what Konan assumed was the kitchen.

“Sip it slowly! Don’t wanna burn your tongue now!”

Still taken aback at the whole situation, Konan did as she was told.

_Chamomile,_ she realized as the liquid slid across her tongue. Thankfully unsweetened, just the way she liked it.

Cutting to the chase, the Nekobaa said, “So what exactly did a pretty young thing like you do to deserve being stabbed and thrown into the ocean?”

“Grandma!” Tamaki exclaimed, her tone scolding. However, Konan knew the girl was curious, too. She had to make up something. Fast.

“I was… uh, mugged?’ It came out as more of a question, but Tamaki and her grandmother didn’t inquire further.

“I see,” the Nekobaa said. Judging by her tone, she knew Konan was lying. “It’s a wonder a wave didn’t capsize you before I came along.”

“Guess that’s where the rubble came in.” Somehow, the botched destruction of Konoha had worked in her favor. Konan took another sip of her tea.

“It’s even more amazing you and your child survived that.”

Konan froze, suddenly breathing in, which caused her tea to go down the wrong tube. After a few second of coughing, she managed to say, “My _what?!_ ”

It was the most emotion either of them had seen from her yet.

“Oh.” Nekobaa nodded knowingly. “You didn’t know you’re pregnant?”

Speechless, Konan shook her head, and the Nekobaa continued, “Still too early to tell whether it’s a boy or a girl. You’re not even a month along.”

_I’m… pregnant?_ Konan thought in awe, trying to wrap her head around the information.

Her single night with Nagato flashed through her head. Nagato in Yahiko’s body—that was the only way possible. She’d never been with anyone else, and deflowering female opponents just wasn’t Tobi’s style. So, did that make her child Nagato or Yahiko’s? Was the rinnegan really so powerful that it caused its deceased vessels to have viable sperm? How did that even work—?

“I see you have a lot of questions to ask yourself,” the Nekobaa said, interrupting her thoughts. “And judging by the way we found you, I’m guessing you have no place to go?”

Konan nodded once again.

“Well, mysterious lady, I am willing to offer you a deal.”

_Deal?_ Konan’s blue eyebrows pinched together questioningly.

“For the duration of your condition, I am willing to offer you a place as one of my sales associates. I’m only getting older and Kami knows Tamaki could use the help.” She took a breath, and then continued. “Also, both Tamaki and I possess enough medical training and knowledge to help you during the duration of your pregnancy and the birthing process. Beyond that, it’s up to you what you wish to do.”

Konan’s head spun throughout the Nekobaa’s explanation. Pregnancy aside, she was alive and not only that, she was being offered a job, one that didn’t involve killing. She shouldn’t have taken as long as she did to respond, but it was a solid minute before she gave a slight nod of her head and a muffled, “Sure.”

Tamaki seemed excited, likely at the idea of having both help and eventually something else that was small and living to take care of. Konan, on the other hand, was terrified.

She didn’t know the first thing about tending to a shop, let alone caring for a child. She would have plenty of time to learn, but what if one of their customers recognized her? Admittedly, her appearance drastically altered without her makeup, piercings, and typical hairstyle, but considering their geographical positioning between Kiri and Konoha, someone was bound to notice.

But, then again, there was also a chance that no one would.

As much as the thought of motherhood terrified her, she’d seen enough death already. Whether the child was Yahiko’s, Nagato’s, or even a little of both, if he or she survived, she would take care of them.

“When do I start?”

“First,” Nekobaa looked at Tamaki again, “You need a shirt.” Tamaki scurried to her feet to obey her grandmother’s orders. “And second…” she trailed off. “What is your name, child?”

The second question caught Konan off guard. Had she seriously been rude enough not to tell them her name yet?

“It’s Konan,” she replied softly.

“First name? Last name?”

“Just Konan.”

Somehow, her answer satisfied the odd woman, and by now Tamaki had returned with a shirt for her, likely one of the girl’s own.

“It might be a little snug,” Tamaki warned, handing her a sleeveless blue-gray top. “You’re a bit bustier than me, but it should work for now.”

From there, given the day’s crazy events, Konan found herself working as a sales associate. Even more shockingly, the Nekobaa had a customer within Konan’s first day. Thankfully, he wasn’t a ninja of any sort, but a travelling carpenter, saying he was headed to Konoha to help with repairs and simply needed a few supplies before he could be on his way.

Konan was the first person he talked to, and the paper kunoichi quickly found that her stoic nature and monotone voice were not terribly conducive to sales. Thankfully, Tamaki had been there to take over for her, but not before briefly scolding her on the importance of “smiling.”

Konan was not amused. Even when she felt happy, she rarely ever smiled. She and Uchiha Itachi certainly shared that in common.

Konan was especially grateful when Tamaki moved her away from customer service and more toward the backroom to procure the supplies needed to restock shelves. That, and refilling the cats’ numerous water and food bowls. Konan wasn’t especially fond of that last one.

By the end of the day, Konan was far more exhausted than she would have thought possible for a job that didn’t involve fighting someone. Given, she was still recovering from her injuries, but she’d fought bigger battles with much worse.

A huge part of her simply wasn’t used to being ordered around by anyone except Nagato. Granted, she’d done that out of love and ache for the void Yahiko’s death had left. And it certainly didn’t help that Tamaki was easily half her age…

But, on the bright side, today hadn’t been a complete waste. She felt an undeniable satisfaction after organizing the store’s entire clothing section. Also, during her lunch break, complete with free food and the freedom to wander about, she doubled back into the room where she’d woken up, and, after turning on the light, discovered her lip and belly-button piercings as well as her trademark origami flower. She put back the piercings, but decided against the flower, figuring it would make her too easily recognizable.

The Nekobaa made a comment after her return about the lip piercing being fine, but advised against maintaining the ring in her belly button during her later months. Admittedly, Konan agreed, but she had a long time before she had to worry about something like that.

Or, at least, what she thought would be a long time.

-

Two months. It had been two months since the infamous Fourth Shinobi War. Repairs were slow to the village, but there were repairs nonetheless. Kisame didn’t know why Tobi chose him of all people to keep watch over Konoha’s progress. Admittedly, they were short-staffed after everything that had happened, but Kisame was a wanted war criminal who physically stuck out like a sore thumb.

Admittedly, the weather was nice; Kisame would give Konoha that. The early fall temperatures in Konoha were nothing like the devilishly hot extremes of Suna or the frigid cold of Kiri.

Still, Zetsu camouflaged better than he did. The plant-like man didn’t possess a sword taller than he was, he didn’t have a chakra presence the size of a mountain, and he didn’t have anywhere near the strength or anger that Kisame possessed. Scouting didn’t usually require his kind of strength or expertise until an enemy interfered.

But still, here he was. The shark hadn’t quite reached Konoha yet. He was a few miles away from the village and in a particularly grassy area at that. There were a few out of season Sakura trees and some others he didn’t know the names of scattered throughout the area. Konoha didn’t usually send scouts out here. There was practically nowhere to hide. That was why he usually took this route.

Admittedly, security had considerably tightened after the war—or at least as much as it could. Each country had lost countless shinobi from that final fight with the seven biju. Even with Naruto and Killer B’s assistance, many lives were lost.

The overall destruction served some comfort to Madara. Kisame didn’t know how long it would be until that madman tried to attack again, but Kisame knew it would be a while. Years even.

Kisame had no place left to go. With only three members left, there was a lot of work to be done, and part of that was scouting. Who knew, maybe Zetsu had something extremely important to do that Kisame didn’t know about.

But, just as Kisame walked a few more steps, he froze. For the first time on this particular route, there was another person here. An enemy? Another rogue?

Kisame’s fingers instinctively wrapped around Samehada’s familiar hilt.

Whoever this was, they wouldn’t last long.

-

Hyuuga Akira yawned, trying to ignore the discomfort she felt as she walked across the grassy field.

If she’d thought life had been difficult with moving around during her second trimester, she recanted that now, because the third was the worst. Her ankles were chronically swollen, she’d had an awful time trying to sleep last night, and any time she came even close to relaxing, one or both of the little ones growing inside her decided this was not going to be so.

Not only that, but Tsunade was running out of jobs for her to do. She’d been offered maternal leave, but with everything that went on with the war and trying to rebuild, Akira had insisted she remain in some kind of work.

Eri was busy with Riku, and when Kaname wasn’t interning at the academy or helping Eri or her, she spent any time she could with Makoto.

The academy was getting harder and harder for Akira to handle. With only one month left to go, Akira was not only huge, but exhausted. Even with Anko taking the majority of the work, it wasn’t wise for Akira to be on her feet for too long. So here she was, in a field near the outskirts of town, searching for herbs and plants for Konoha’s medicine department.

Akira couldn’t help but laugh at the fact a job she had once hated was now a break for her. A lot had changed since then. Since before she’d met Itachi and gotten mixed up in the whole Akatsuki business.

Akira walked a few more yards, but, with each passing movement, every part of her screamed in protest. Whether she liked it or not, she needed to rest.

She found the perfect cozy spot beneath an-out-of-season Sakura tree. The sun wasn’t hot, but the tree provided just the right amount of shade without being too cool. It didn’t take long before she was curled up on the soft grass surrounding the tree’s roots. A semi-full plant container of various labelled baggies sat beside her, telling of her job, but doing little to inspire.

And, although she didn’t intend to, Akira fell asleep.

-

Kisame approached his target with careful steps. With Samehada fully out of its harness, he was ready to strike.

Whoever this was, they were asleep beneath the shade of a tree. Kisame mentally scoffed, already berating the person for their stupidity. Any ninja worth even half a damn knew better than to fall asleep without another person to keep watch, regardless of how tired he or she felt.

He was practically standing over the person by now. His soon-to-be victim lay curled up on their side with their face turned away, disallowing him from seeing any distinct features. Up close, Kisame could tell this was a woman. If she was a ninja, she was off-duty.

Long blonde hair framed her figure. Judging by the size of her midsection, she was pregnant.

His weapon hovered at her throat, ready to strike. Even in this condition, he couldn’t risk someone seeing him. But his mind became numb and his sword stopped when she rolled over in her sleep, revealing her face.

“Akira?!” he breathed and, immediately, Kisame felt silly to have not recognized her. To make matters worse, his outburst seemed to have woken her. Lavender eyes shot open.

Alarm showed clearly in her features. Understandably, she noticed his weapon before she noticed him. Then, in yet another freak coincidence, their eyes met.

“Kisame?” she sounded just as shocked as he was. Suddenly feeling ashamed, he lowered his weapon.

“Fancy meeting you here,” he all but growled. By now, she was wide awake and sitting up as much as she physically could. Her back leaned against the trunk of the out-of-season Sakura tree.

Well, there was no way he couldn’t make this awkward. Nonetheless, she smiled softly, and, at that, Kisame relaxed. Seeing no point in remaining standing, he stabbed his weapon into the ground and plopped down beside her beneath the tree.

Neither of them spoke for the first few seconds, but Akira broke the silence.

“How are things with you?”

It was his turn to smile. There they both went with ignoring the obvious.

“Good as they’re going to get. Busy as hell, but not much I can do about that.”

He tried to avoid looking at her midsection, he really did, and almost succeeded, too—but then it started… moving?

“Is that supposed to happen?” Kisame interrupted, halting some pathetic small talk Akira had been attempting.

Akira looked at him quizzically and followed his gaze to her stomach. She laughed, only causing the area to move all the more.

“Of course it is!” she assured, wiping a happy tear from her eye. “Haven’t you ever dealt with someone like this?”

He hesitated. Then admitted, “I know the theory.”

“I guess that explains a few things.” She laughed again, then outstretched her palm. “Here, give me your hand.”

Kisame felt like he should recoil. There was no logical reason why he was even here, talking to her. Any sensible ninja would have killed her back when he had his initial chance in Konoha. But, for whatever reason, he gave her his hand, and, the next thing Kisame knew, he was touching her swollen belly.

It was still at first. For a moment, he wondered if it were all in his head. But, sure enough, something solid hit his hand just beneath the skin, causing him to recoil for real this time.

“Odd,” he muttered. Akira just laughed again, and even with the happy gesture, Kisame knew there was sorrow behind it.

“Itachi didn’t know, did he?” Kisame finally spoke his mind. Honestly, he was eager to know.

Akira didn’t answer at first. The smile left her eyes and for a moment Kisame feared she may weep. But she didn’t, and then merely nodded.

“He died… before I could tell him,” she said quietly.

His suspicions had been right. Itachi had abandoned her without fully realizing the repercussions of his actions.

“I’m sorry.” It was pathetic and not exactly a phrase he said often, but he meant it. Akira smiled sadly this time.

He definitely meant it.

“Can’t exactly change the past.” With the way she seemed to be holding back tears again, Kisame was eager to change the subject.

“Do you know the gender?” Honestly, although he didn’t really care, it was the only question he could think of. Frankly, with the size of her stomach, either one would be quite a chore to birth.

“I’m having twins,” she said quietly. “It’s both.”

The shark nodded, giving a, “Hm,” of acknowledgement, despite his actual emotions being much, much stronger. Thankfully, Akira didn’t press further.

“You aren’t going to tell Madara… are you?” her voice was meek now. Likely, she knew he hadn’t told the true Akatsuki leader anything yet, but was aware of the possibility he could. Maybe she thought he wanted something out of it.

With everything Tobi had going on with the invasion, Akira, as far as Kisame knew, had been the least of the Uchiha’s worries.

“Haven’t yet and don’t really plan to.” Her shoulders sagged with relief. “I see no point in meaningless bloodshed.” At least, in this case he didn’t. That phrase was more Itachi’s motto than his.

“Thank you.”

Kisame scoffed. “You’re the one stuck in Konoha.”

“I know.” She paused. “Not just for that,” she began. His attention was had. “Thank you for sparing me… back there.”

Needing no further elaboration, Kisame laughed.

“I was more surprised than anything,” he admitted. “I thought you’d be long gone from anything Akatsuki-related.”

Her grin turned defiant. Now she looked like the girl he knew from Akatsuki again.

“Not a chance.”

Their conversation continued, but it didn’t delve much deeper than that. He found out about her job at the academy and she found out about his glorified scouting missions. Neither of them went into vivid detail, and frankly, they didn’t have to. They weren’t trying to betray any loyalties. They were just friends catching up.

But it was getting late. They’d both been there longer than they should.

“We should get back,” he finally said. Although she seemed to be enjoying herself again for what Kisame guessed was a long time, she agreed.

“It was nice to see you again,” she concurred as he stood up. In an amazingly out-of-character moment, Kisame held out two hands, offering to help the Hyuuga girl to her feet. She accepted, but was much heavier than he remembered, even from two months ago.

After that, she retrieved her plant container without having to bend down using a kick and some fancy footwork, and he reattached Samehada to its harness.

It took a moment for Akira to fully regain her balance, but when she did, Kisame saw her smile the most genuinely he’d seen all day.

They didn’t say anything to each other when they left. Madara would have to be satisfied with a scouting report eerily similar to last time. And Akira…

Unwittingly, Kisame turned around again to watch her walk into the distance.

Considering everything she had to deal with, she was doing alright.

-

Honestly, it wasn’t like Kisame intended to see Akira again after that. It had just sort of happened. Around the same time that next week, Kisame found himself with a similar assignment, to go spy on Konoha’s progress. Out of pure curiosity, Kisame took the same route to find Akira resting beneath that same tree, only this time, she was conscious and he didn’t bother threatening her.

They just talked again. Simple, stupid conversations. Sometimes, even about Itachi. Although she didn’t say it outright, Kisame knew from the longing in her voice that she missed his former partner terribly. A part of him did, too, but it was different.

She’d know Itachi on a deeply personal level and, although there were things that only Kisame and Itachi had known about each other, part of what made them work so well together was how they kept things strictly business. Not to mention, the more obvious fact that Akira would have to raise that stupid Uchiha’s children alone.

He made the idiotic comment in there somewhere that she should find someone else to help her, someone who could be a father to her kids. Akira had merely shook her head, saying that she knew it was selfish, but she didn’t want anyone else. Anything more and she’d be faking it, and setting that sort of example in her personal life was one of the last things he wanted for her kids.

And, to that, Kisame had nothing to say. He could tell her they would be Uchihas and that nothing she did or didn’t do would save them from that hardship barring death. Kisame knew she wouldn’t care. She was hell-bent on raising them. She’d already stayed in Konoha, but now this, too?

The next time they ran into each other, Akira brought an extra bento box, saying she’d “found it lying around.” Kisame graciously accepted the offer, especially thankful considering he had yet to eat that day. From then on, she kept doing it, making the same excuse every time.

With each passing week, Kisame could tell it was getting harder and harder for her to move. Even so, she still came. Dare he say it, he was actually beginning to enjoy her company.

Admittedly, Madara was growing impatient with his long trips and vague reports. Kisame knew he couldn’t keep this up forever, but, whether he wanted to admit it or not, like Akira, this was one of the last connections he had to Itachi.

For the first time in his life, Kisame began to realize what Itachi saw in her. Even if Akira wasn’t the strongest of kunoichi, she was strong in her own way, both physically and mentally. Not just that, she was a sweet and thoughtful person. She wasn’t naive—Akatsuki had certain beaten any trace of that out of her—but she tried to make the best out of what she had. Despite the bulging belly from her current physical condition, to Kisame, that was beautiful.

The next time they were “scheduled” to meet, Kisame openly admitted to himself that he was looking forward to it. Even Madara seemed suspicious as to what had put him in such a good mood, but thankfully didn’t ask.

Kisame waited under that same Sakura tree, figuring she was probably late. Kisame waited—far longer than he should have—but she never came.

Perhaps, she’d grown tired of his company. Maybe someone from Konoha had grown suspicious of her. Whatever it was, Kisame tried not to think about it. The last thing either of them needed was for someone to find out about their “coincidental” get-togethers.

The next week, she was late again, and Kisame mentally kicked himself for taking this route yet again. He knew better—he’d always known better—but still, he waited. The sun was just about to set, and Kisame was seconds away from rising to his feet to leave when he noticed a familiar blonde walking toward him from beyond the horizon.

Even with her chakra cloaked, Kisame could tell it was Akira, but something was different—the giant lump in her stomach was gone, and instead she carried two slings—one on her back and another in front of her—with two red-faced and most definitely newborn infants.

Now last week’s absence made total sense. Of course, he’d been the one to assume the worst. Up close, she looked exhausted, but her smile was genuine.

She sat down beside him, more slowly as usual, and Kisame could not help but stare at the two bundles nestled in either of her arms.

The babes possessed the same eerily familiar dark hair, a shade that definitely matched his former partner’s. Both wrinkled masses were wrapped in blankets, too, one pink and one blue. With nothing to say, Kisame could only stare.

“Well?” Akira was the first to speak.

He’d never been this close to an infant before, let alone two of them.

“Glad to see no one found you out.”

She was clearly dissatisfied with his answer, but, aside from her expression, she did nothing. But, before he could further comment on anything completely unrelated, the child in the pink blanket began to stir.

She didn’t cry. Even Akira looked surprised. The dark-haired child merely opened her eyes and squinted around, still blind to the world. Even Kisame with his minimal knowledge knew that children’s eyesight didn’t develop until much later. Even so, she looked straight at him.

Part of him expected her eyes to be coal black, like Itachi’s, and the other admitted they could be lavender, like Akira’s, but they were _gray_ —gray and full of wonder and amazement at the painful world they were born into.

“Do they have names yet?”

Akira nodded, and motioned to the girl with her hand.

“This is Kagami, named after Uchiha Shisui’s grandfather.”

_Uchiha Shisui?_ Itacih’s best friend. He hadn’t known much about the boy, only the tidbits his former partner would sometimes mention. Regardless, Kagami, meaning mirror, was the perfect name for this little Itachi look-alike. Even with gray eyes, she was going to look like an Uchiha.

“And the other one?”

If there had been pins to drop, Kisame could have heard them. Even the birds seemed to stop chirping for a brief moment as Kisame processed the boy’s name.

“You sure that’s fair to the kid?”

“Someone has to redeem the name,” Akira murmured softly. “Besides, Itachi never gave up on him.”

“You can do that without naming your kid after him.”

Akira just shook her head.

“It was also the third hokage’s father’s name.”

Kisame didn’t like it. He didn’t like the idea of seeing what was left of his former partner named after what killed him, but, in all honestly, it was something he could definitely see Itachi doing. Whether for sentiment or simply some twisted form of redemption, if anyone could mend the name for the history books, it was this kid.

“You sure no one’s gonna catch on? I mean, these two don’t exactly look a ton like you.”

“There are plenty of people with dark hair and gray eyes.”

“I suppose so.” He knew better than to bring up bloodline limits. What about when they activated the sharingan? Did she plan to go public with these kids’ identities?

Whatever it was, Kisame knew she would do the best she could. Nonetheless, her next question caught him off guard.

“Do you want to hold her?” Kagami continued to stare at him, eyes unblinking, while little Sasuke remained asleep in his mother’s arms.

He sputtered a reply, not really a yes or a no, but somehow, she took it as a yes and the next thing Kisame knew, he was holding the most fragile human being he’d ever seen in his life. Akira gave him a few tips like “use your arm here” and “hold her head like this” but he barely heard her.

With such a fragile-looking face and limbs nowhere near the width of his wrists, Kisame felt terrified of breaking her. She was so tiny, and, with his hands that were so used to war, Kisame held her in the crook of his elbow like one would a precious artifact. Sunlight danced off her raven hair as gray eyes squinted from the brightness.

Child-like hands groped the air, searching for something to hold. Somehow, that something turned out to be the index finger of Kisame’s opposite hand. Her fingers didn’t even fit all the way around his, but Kisame did not discredit her for trying.

She was a determined little newborn—so determined, in fact, that the next thing she tried to do was bite him, despite having no teeth.

“Itai!” His hand jerked away. Not out of pain, but surprise.

The infant immediately noted his absence and attempted to find his hand again. This time he let her, not caring when she tried to gnaw on what she did not yet realize was a deadly weapon, blue and calloused from use. It was oddly endearing.

“Just like yer dad, kid,” Kisame couldn’t help but smile his pointy-toothed grin. “She’s a fighter.”

Akira smiled, too. Somehow, Sasuke remained asleep. Kisame focused his full attention on not dropping Kagami. She was so light he could easily forget her presence, considering he was used to Samehada.

Being completely caught up in the moment, Kisame lost track of time.

It then occurred to him how incredibly unfair this was. Here he was holding Itachi’s daughter, while Itachi himself was Kami knew where. That Uchiha would have literally killed for a moment like this, alone in a meadow with Akira, away from prying eyes and holding a child _he_ fathered that looked like him.

Itachi had always wanted a normal life. Kisame knew that now. He hadn’t wanted to kill or fight, but he’d been given no choice. Kisame had a choice and, more often than not, he chose violence.

Kisame didn’t deserve this. But still, here he was.

Kagami momentarily stopped trying to play with his index finger, and, thinking she was done, Kisame retracted his hand. But apparently, this was not the case. Her facial features scrunched and she proceeded to cry.

Not knowing what to do, he turned to Akira with a helpless look on his face. She motioned for Kisame to hand her back, which he did gladly.

Kagami wailed for a bit, her brother somehow sleeping through it all, but then she stopped, leaning against her mother as if it never happened. Much to Kisame’s relief, she fell asleep.

“Powerful set of lungs she’s got.”

Akira agreed full heartedly as she readjusted her daughter’s position on her arm. “There’s another one if you want to hold him, too,” she offered.

“That’s okay. I think I’ve had more than enough for today.” It was miraculous enough that Kagami remained in one piece after time with someone like him.

Kisame’s next words came out much softer than intended.

“Take care of these two.”

“I will.”

By now, the sun was beginning to set, and they both needed to go.

“I should be getting back,” Kisame said. Akira nodded knowingly and began refastening the twins in their respective slings. Kisame waited until she was finished before he said what he did.

“This needs to stop.” He didn’t like it, but it was true. Madara was already suspicious. He didn’t need to follow Kisame out here and discover this.

Surprisingly, she understood. Akira didn’t protest or even comment. She just nodded her head and Kisame suspected she’d known it, too.

They were both standing again, but this time, he hadn’t needed to help her up.

“Thank you,” she mustered, her tone hesitant. “It was nice to talk to someone again.”

_“Someone about Itachi…”_ he knew she meant. Although he would never admit it aloud, Kisame felt the same way.

“Take care of yourself, kunoichi.” And why Kisame did what he did next, he would never know.

In one swift motion, the shark bent down and pressed his lips to the girl’s forehead. It was barely for a second, but it was there.

“Goodbye, Akira.”

Next they met, Kisame knew they would be enemies.


	48. Chapter 48

A gust of wind rolled through the garden where Konan stood. The sun shone brightly. A perfect day.

“How long do you plan to stand there? This gardening isn’t going to finish itself!”

A once rare and now far more common smile graced Konan’s features as she looked over her shoulder at the elderly woman sitting on a nearby stone bench, plucking a catnip bush. Five felines lay nestled on the Nekobaa’s side, on her lap, and at her feet.

“I was just thinking,” Konan replied, and turned fully toward the woman, trowel in hand. The paper kunoichi’s outfit was a large brimmed woven hat to keep the sun away from her pale complexion and an ethereal-looking white sundress—yes, her in white, go figure—with a lot of give around her midsection, where an unmistakable bump resided.

It was April now. She had approximately three months left until her due date. Konan couldn’t believe how much had changed. She couldn’t believe how much _she_ had changed.

Her days of retail service hadn’t lasted long. For one, she continued to fear that someone may recognize her, even with how different she looked now, and, secondly, she didn’t enjoy it. Konan was used to a very active life style. Not that retail couldn’t provide that for her, but it was the slow days that were the worst. When no one was there, there was only so much pricing and organizing that could be done, and with all the cats in the house and the smells combined with the many hormone changes occurring in her body, Konan had been ready to go homicidal on the next person who waved to her.

Then one day, a little after her first month of being there, the Nekobaa had randomly told her to go outside. Konan hadn’t done anything wrong (that she knew of), but, after being ushered to the outdoors, the Nekobaa had motioned to a small pile of gardening supplies and told her to weed  and rake what she could. Because this was an island, it didn’t have the same seasons that Ame or even Konoha had. It was usually warm. Some days were colder or windier than others, but overall, it was pretty easy to grow things at any time of the year.

Admittedly, she had not been good at gardening at first. Her rows were haphazard and she didn’t know how to properly care for any portion of the garden. There were two sides: one for vegetables and the occasional fruit and the other for flowers and bushes.

But, over time, she’d gotten better at gardening, and discovered that she actually enjoyed it. As the months passed, it was getting harder and harder to get up and down with all the extra weight she was putting on, but the pain didn’t bother her. Compared to everything she’d already been through and all the lives she’d ended, the least she could do was tend to the lives of these plants and whatever it was growing inside her.

Thankfully, Tamaki didn’t mind the retail portion of the job and actually preferred inside work over gardening. Something about hating all the bugs and bees that came with the flowers. Either way, it worked out. Konan didn’t have to worry about slow days or being recognized, and, when it rained, she had the day off.

Unlike her, the Nekobaa could not ignore the pain that came with gardening. She was much older, and, as much as she loved the flowers and vegetables, her body was deteriorating much faster than Konan’s. She wasn’t a particularly active person, and although she got done what she needed to, she much preferred to give orders rather than to follow them.

One trick in particular that Konan had learned was using chum or fish remnants as compost to help things grow better. At first, being someone who had never gardened before, the idea repulsed her, but, after the Nekobaa and even Tamaki stepped in to show her how it was done, it made sense. One of the few active things the Nekobaa did was deep sea fishing, where she would disappear for nearly a week and come back with easily a month’s worth of food.

Normally, such an old woman going deep sea fishing by herself would be alarming, but the Nekobaa took several cats with her for assistance, two of which could talk. Their names were Denka and Hina, if Konan remembered properly. Tamaki had told her that “Grandma’s been doing this as long as I can remember,” and, between the woman’s fishing trips and what the three of them grew in the garden, they were completely self-sufficient.

Needless to say, Konan learned to appreciate many types of seafood, and the Nekobaa knew which ones for her to avoid. Not all of them were safe for prenatal care, or so she had said. Regardless, Konan learned how to clean countless types of creatures and then take whatever was left and use it for the gardens. She especially loved how everything had its place and almost nothing was wasted.

“Would you like me to prune the gardenias?” Konan inquired, eyes darting back to ensure the scissors were indeed where she thought she left them.

“They’ll be fine. Check to see if the tomatoes are ripe yet. Tamaki said they would go well with tonight’s dinner.”

Speaking of Tamaki, the girl came out to join them just after her grandmother’s words, carrying a tray with two glasses of water.

“Hey, I figured you two could use something cool out here!” the girl said. First, she handed a glass to her grandmother, who took it graciously, but set it beside for a while before taking a sip. One of the cats nestled in the old woman’s lap leaned over to taste the liquid with its sandpaper-like tongue.

“How is the shop today, Tamaki?” The Nekobaa questioned as Tamaki handed Konan a cup of her own. Konan sipped her beverage and took the change in conversation as a hint that she was allowed to take a break, which her swollen ankles and aching back were certainly thankful for.

“Slow. We had one guy from Suna headed to Kiri for something. He bought a few typical travelling supplies, but nothing particularly extravagant.” Tamaki sighed and tucked the now empty tray beneath her arm. “Hopefully, we’ll either get more customers today or it’ll be busier tomorrow.”

The Nekobaa nudged away one of the cats at her side and motioned for Konan to sit beside her on the stone garden bench, which Konan did and then placed a hand on her stomach. Whatever was in there had moved. The cat shoved away to make room for Konan seemed ignorant to the former Akatsuki’s plight and settled for jumping back onto the paper kunoichi’s lap rather than the bench. Sighing outwardly, Konan used the hand that wasn’t holding her stomach to absentmindedly scratch the feline behind the ears.

She didn’t know if her child was a boy or a girl. Honestly, she figured she’d find out the natural way. If it was a boy, she would probably name him Nagato or Yahiko. Yahiko most likely. Nagato would like that. And if it was a girl…

Tamaki and her grandmother continued to discuss the shop and something about dinner tonight, but Konan hardly heard them.

What if it was a girl? Konan had no idea what to name her.

Mentally sighing, Konan made a point to turn her attention back to the conversation after one more thought. Whatever happened, she had time. She would know what to do when the time came.

-

A scream echoed through the empty hallways of the Nekobaa’s shop, startling the felines. Three figures huddled together in the room where Konan had initially woken up.

Konan lay on her back, grunting and groaning in between screams from labor pain. Tamaki and the Nekobaa spoke in low, urgent tones.

“She’s been like this for hours! Something has to be wrong!”

“She’s almost fully dilated, Tamaki. Your mother was like this with you. The baby should be coming any moment now.”

“Wh-what’s wrong?” Konan lay on her back, head propped up with a pillow. She’d endured some pretty hellish things during her time as a ninja, but nothing like this. Nothing with this level of pain—

Konan screamed again. Her fisted balled, gripping the sweat-soaked sheets beneath her.

“Can you see the head yet, Grandma?” Tamaki questioned, looking hopeful.

“Hm.” The Nekobaa wore a contemplative expression before turning her attention away from Konan’s lady parts and instead placing her hands on the woman’s stomach, feeling around with sensitive hands. She turned to say something to the panting kunoichi.

“Your baby’s breached. It’s not coming out head first.”

”W-what am I supposed to d-do?” Konan stuttered. Her head spun. It was a miracle she could hear the woman speak.

“Hold still.” The screams continued, but Konan did as she was told. Somewhere during that time, Tamaki had taken to gripping the paper kunoichi’s hand, giving her something to squeeze. The Nekobaa attempted to coax the baby into the proper positioning through pushing on her stomach with a firm, but gentle pressure. It still fucking hurt, but mostly due to the contractions.

It felt like an eternity, but finally something moved. It was a wonder Tamaki wasn’t screaming herself with how tightly Konan gripped her hand. The Nekobaa gently reminded Konan of her breathing exercises they’d gone over countless times since she’d been here. Through some miracle, Konan managed to obey.

_One more push. Just one more!_

Konan must have blacked out, because she couldn’t remember what happened next. Somewhere in there, she’d let go of Tamaki’s hand. Her thoughts were a blur, but she could hear her baby wailing. As loud as it was, Konan was relieved, knowing that her child had been born alive. Being half-conscious, she couldn’t see anything, and what little she could hear registered in fragments.

Her eyes focused slightly. She hurt everywhere. Tamaki was right in front of her and her mouth moved, but it took several tries before Konan could begin to understand her.

“It’s a girl!” As more of her vision returned, as did her hearing. The red-faced infant, wrapped in a thick knitted blanket, was placed in her tired arms. A shock of blue hair, a few shades lighter than hers, adorned the child’s head. Konan felt momentarily relieved, but, without warning, she blacked out again and her arms failed her, forcing Tamaki to catch the child before Konan lost her grip.

Something wasn’t right with her.

Wrinkled hands poked and prodded and, in her delirium, Konan heard the duo talking in low, urgent tones. She couldn’t hear much, but what she could didn’t sound good. After the Nekobaa uttered the words, “internal bleeding,” Konan’s fears were confirmed.

“I’m dying aren’t I?” Konan cut off any conversation they’d been having. The room went momentarily silent until the baby cried out again.

“We don’t know that yet,” Tamaki interjected, but by now Konan’s vision focused well enough for her to see the Nekobaa shoot a disproving glare at her granddaughter.

Konan held out her arms in an attempt to hold her daughter once more. Tamaki complied, but this time stuck close by to hold Konan in place.

“You’re bleeding internally. Something ruptured and I don’t have the right tools to stop it,” the Nekobaa informed. Save for the beads of sweat on her forehead, Konan’s expression remained steady. It was Tamaki who looked frantic. “It is unlikely that you’ll live much longer.”

“Hm.” What else could she say? Konan could feel her life slipping. There was so much more she wanted to do, things she wanted to say to her daughter.

“Her name is Saya,” Konan murmured. Saya—meaning sheath. Her child would not be a weapon, but a sheath, used to contain that violence. At least, that’s what she hoped. The peace that Nagato and Yahiko had desired and the one that Uzumaki Naruto had made a reality. That was the world she wanted her daughter to live in.

 “Saya,” Tamaki repeated. Konan heard the Nekobaa grunt her approval, but couldn’t see because she had closed her eyes once again.

She couldn’t leave these people with this sort of burden. And her child—she deserved a loving family. In the least, a mother who could care for her.

“Moriko,” for the first time, Konan used the woman’s first name, “I have a favor to ask.”

“Ask,” the elderly woman nodded. Tamaki glanced unsurely between them, her hands still holding Saya in place in Konan’s arms.

Konan spoke her words in sputters. She knew this was a lot to ask, but if there was one thing, just one thing she could do to make her daughter’s life better, she would do it, and this was all she could think of.

Konan no longer felt Saya in her arms at this point, but she had faith that these people would keep their word. Saya would have a better life than her—she had to.

_Come with us, Konan._ A familiar voice spoke to her. One she hadn’t heard in decades. Two smiling faces filled her vision, one with a ringed gaze.

_Nagato… Yahiko._

_“It okay, Konan. You can let go.”_

Her world was going dark now. It felt like she was floating in the river again, although this time there would be no wake up. Her blood drained and her body weakened, but she was at peace. Her last words to Moriko and Tamaki were, “Thank you.”

-

It didn’t feel like it had been ten months since the attack on Konoha. In that time, Kaname and Eri had requested an extended stay in order to assist the recovering village, which Hayate, likely persuaded by Kaede, had granted.

Akira already knew she was here to stay. With the twins and the risk of Madara finding her, she couldn’t take any chances.

She couldn’t believe Kagami and Sasuke were nearly six months old. Kagami was sitting up and Ssauke crawled anywhere he could find. With Riku added to the mix, life was hectic to say in the least.

Kaname had since married and moved out with Makoto into a place of their own. They remained close by, but now it was just Akira and Eri in the apartment.

Akira had finished out her semester at the academy, giving her a full year of teaching under her belt, before resuming her more intensive studies with Tsunade.

Amid all the transitions, Taisou had been a huge help. When she or her friends went out on missions, he volunteered to watch the twins and, when no one else was available, even Riku.

Hinata helped, too, but not at first. She, as well as the rest of what used to be Team Gai, took Neji’s death pretty hard. But, almost a year later, as a result, Naruto had begun dating Hinata, and Lee and Tenten, being the only team members left, were seeing each other pretty seriously, too.

Sakura and Sasuke had begun something, too, although Akira wouldn’t necessarily call it dating. Sasuke was serving probation for his crimes and trying to find himself again. Sakura was more than willing to help, but, understandably, her trust remained broken.

The rest of Sasuke’s team was here, too. Naruto had managed to persuade whatever powers that be to grant them probation rather than imprisonment. Juugo had been awarded the best medical care in the five great nations to help him control his urges. Karin helped out in the intelligence department, under heavy surveillance of course, and finally seemed to realize Sasuke would never return her affections. In fact, she and Suigetus had seemed awfully close as of late. Suigetus had been assigned momentary guard duty until he could prove more trustworthy in a separate position.

Currently, Akira made her way to the hokage’s tower, this time in under ten minutes. It was a relief, being able to move properly again, although Akira had to admit that having three babies in one apartment was hell on her and Eri’s sleep schedules. Nonetheless, like Konoha, they would make it through.

After ascending the many steps leading up the mountain, Akira made it to Tsunade’s office where she felt not one, but two chakra presences.

_That’s odd…_

She walked into the room to see another boy, approximately Naruto’s age, who she recognized from Hinata’s team. The same boy who had delivered the unfortunate news that Danzou was temporarily hokage during the invasion. _Kiba,_ she believed he was named.

“Ah, finally here I see,” Tsunade greeted. Akira smiled, albeit nervously. “I have a mission for you.”

Akira took her place in silence beside Kiba. He didn’t seem to recognize her, although Akira was positive Hinata had mentioned her before.

“What’s the rank?” Akira inquired as politely as possible.

“D,” Tsunade replied. Akira kept her expression blank, although she was mentally questioning.

Tsunade somehow noticed and added, “You, Akira, were specifically requested.”

“Where exactly is this mission?”

“A small island between here and the Land of Waves.” At Tsunade’s response, Akira’s confusion only grew. She’d never been there before. She didn’t know anyone _from_ there. How the hell did they even know who she was enough to request her?

“The goal of this mission is to assist your employer Nekori Moriko in maintaining her shop.”

_I’m going all the way out there just for that?_ Akira wondered.

“The location is rather secluded,” Tsunade elaborated. “I’m sending Kiba with you on the slight off chance something could happen.”

Akira stole a glance at the feral-looking Inuzuka. His dog must be waiting outside.

“So I’m just a tag along?” Kiba did not look impressed. Rather than answering him, Tsunade continued her instructions.

“You two will leave immediately.”

The journey was long, but not arduous. Upon leaving the hokage’s tower, Akira was introduced to Kiba’s teammate—not pet, apparently—Akamaru, who seemed friendly enough. He didn’t lick her or anything, but, in the least, he didn’t growl.

 The transportation part of their mission occurred mostly by boat. On Tsunade’s orders, a civilian fisherman was to drop them by the island and pick them up three days later once their mission was completed.

“Well, here we are.” Akira straightened her backpack and attempted to flash a smile at Kiba. He didn’t respond with much aside from patting Akamaru on the head.

As expected, the area didn’t look like much. Nekori’s shop was located apparently on what used to be the outskirts of a small village. In the least, they wouldn’t have to walk past any empty homes. Akira knew she would have found the sight quite depressing.

“Ever been here before?” Akira inquired, still trying to be friendly.

“No,” Kiba replied. First word she’d gotten out of him yet.

“Hm. Me neither.”

Kiba looked surprised.

“Then why were you requested?” To which, Akira shrugged.

“Beats me.”

They made it to the ship in under an hour. The foliage on this island was so thick it was a wonder anyone knew where anything was. Remarkably, Tsunade’s directions had been clear.

The two of them walked into the tiny-looking shop through a makeshift door that was actually a cloth curtain. Upon entering, Kiba’s features scrunched, and Akamaru began to growl. Before Akira could question, she got her answer when three furry creatures scurried past them.

Cats—and there were tons of them here.

Before Kiba or Akamaru could attack anything, a girl joined them in the room from another doorway. She looked about Kiba’s age with ridiculously long brown hair and wore a red sleeveless shirt with dark pants.

_Tamaki…_ For some reason, Akira knew her name. Itachi’s knowledge? He must have been here before. A lot had changed, though. That must be why she didn’t recognize anything before.

The girl’s eyes rested on Akira, then Kiba, then back to Akira. Then she said, with a bright smile, “Oh, you must be Akira!”

“Yes.” Akira and Kiba—who took a little persuasion in the form of a shove—bowed in greeting. “Pleased to meet you.”

Sure enough, her next words were, “My name is Tamaki.” And she bowed, as well. “Grandma’s in the other room. She’ll be pleased to know you’re here.”

“What am I, chopped liver?” she heard Kiba mutter as Tamaki led them to the other room.

When they reached the shop portion of the building, which also contained Tamaki’s grandmother, Akira hadn’t felt like thankful for Itachi’s knowledge in a while. It was the only thing that kept her from staring at the Nekobaa’s appearance.

_Itachi’s family came here to shop for cheap supplies,_ Akira realized, eyes surreptitiously darting around and recognizing things she’d never seen before.

The elderly cat-like woman, with many of her kindred feline friends surrounding her, smoked a pipe as she examined them with scrunched eyes. Like Tamaki, her head turned to Akira first and then Kiba. She didn’t seem too happy to see Akamaru, who was growling again, but she said nothing.

“Hello, my name is Moriko, but please call me Nekobaa,” the woman introduced, her voice old and raspy from smoking for many years. “Tamaki,” she said, turning to her granddaughter instead. “Please show this nice young man and his pet to their rooms. I’m sure they’ve had a long journey.”

“Hey, Akamaru isn’t my pet! He’s my teammate!” Kiba shot back.

Once again, the Nekobaa did not acknowledge him, but rather turned to Akira.

“This way!” Tamaki motioned for Kiba to follow her, and, surprisingly, Akamaru was the first to scamper over to her. She knelt down and held out her hand. Despite the undeniable stench of cat that lingered there, he licked her palm and Tamaki laughed.

“It’s Kiba, right?” The Inuzuka seemed surprised she knew his name until she continued, “Tsunade let us know who was coming.”

From there, Tamaki had the canine duo follow her through a different doorway than the one they entered through. Akira was about to turn around and follow them, but the Nekobaa stopped her.

“You, stay here.” Akira knew the elderly woman was talking to her.

The room fell silent. Then the Nekobaa spoke again.

“Follow me,” she commanded, and, while the large woman set aside her pipe and rose to her feet, disturbing the felines who had been using her as a resting place, Akira had no choice but to comply.

The Nekobaa led her down another hallway. Not the one Tamaki and Kiba had gone through and not the one she and Kiba had come through to get to the shop. There were a lot of hallways here.

_This is unbelievably odd,_ Akira mentally frowned, but outwardly kept her expression stoic. They walked all the way to another unlit room that, if Akira had to guess, looked like a bedroom.

“Keep your voice down,” the Nekobaa murmured. She slid open the Japanese style door to indeed reveal a bedroom oddly void of cats. Regardless, it was not the kind of bedroom Akira expected.

It was a baby room—a girl by the looks of it.

The Nekobaa walked over to the cradle in the middle of the room. An array of vintage-looking bobbles, likely what had been used for Tamaki when she was an infant, hung from a bar attached to the side of the cradle, which was mostly composed of a painted white wood.

The infant appeared to have woken, but she didn’t cry. The Nekobaa lifted her from the crib and Akira was surprised to see she wasn’t much older than one or two months.

_Just who is she?_ Akira wondered. This island was not a convenient place to leave abandoned children, and the babe looked nothing like Tamaki.

A small nightlight illuminated the center of the room, allowing Akira to discern that this little one’s hair was blue. Furthermore, when she opened her eyes, they weren’t brown like Tamaki’s, either. They were jade green, almost like Haruno Sakura’s.

“This is Saya,” the Nekobaa introduced.

Instinctively, Akira drew closer and leaned in ever-so-slightly to better examine the girl in the elderly woman’s arms. An irresistible smile graced the Hyuuga girl’s features.

It seemed like only yesterday that Kagami and Sasuke had been this small. Granted, they weren’t much bigger than this girl now, but a lot of growth occurred over the first few months of an infant’s life.

Her surprise only grew when the Nekobaa handed Saya to her, and, although hesitant at first, Akira knew what to do thanks to Kagami and Sasuke.

“She’s beautiful,” Akira murmured, entranced by this girl’s big, curious eyes. Her body swayed as she subtly rocked the infant. Akira’s next words were hushed. “But what does she have to do with me? My understanding was that our mission here is to help you with your shop.”

_Which doesn’t look like it gets many customers anyway,_ Akira mentally added.

“Her mother is dead,” the Nekobaa stated, seemingly random.

_Okay…_

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“She mentioned you with her last breath. Said you would be able to care for her daughter and if not that, find someone suitable who would.”

“What was her mother’s name?”

The Nekobaa paused, and, for a moment, Akira feared she wouldn’t answer. Then, she finally said, “Konan.”

Akira was thrown for a loop. So much so, that she had to mentally remind herself she was still holding a child.

“I thought she died over a year ago,” Akira murmured. And Konan’s child—Pein? That was the only paternal possibility who made sense. Not just that, but how had she ended up here?

“I found her floating in the water during a deep sea fishing trip,” the Nekobaa explained.

Although the notion of this old woman embarking on a deep sea fishing trip puzzled her, Akira said nothing and attempted to banish the laughable image from her head.

“She was wounded, but, despite all that, somehow both she and her child survived.”

“Did Konan die in childbirth?”

The Nekobaa nodded gravely. “She lost too much blood. Didn’t say much about her past in the nine months she spent here. Didn’t mention anyone either until your name came up in her final moments.”

It did surprise her, Akira had to admit, but not entirely. Konan’s entire network had been a bunch of S-ranked criminals, most of whom were dead by now. Not exactly the most ideal people to care for children.

“So I’m supposed to take her back with me?” This could not be happening. She and Eri had their hands full enough as it was with Riku and the twins. Did they really need to add yet another Akatsuki descendent to their already colorful mix?

“I will give you the next three days to decide,” the Nekobaa replied. “I am much too old to care for this girl until she grow up, and Tamaki is much too young.”

“I already have to kids of my own,” Akira admitted. The Nekobaa looked surprised and Akira added, “They’re not even a year old yet. Twins.”

_Even if she did know Itachi, I probably shouldn’t tell her they’re his._

“Ah. That makes sense.” Akira refrained from adding the real reason that Konan had chosen her as the most likely candidate to care for her daughter: their interaction at Akatsuki. She doubted that Konan had known about the twins and most definitely not Riku.

“What are your children’s names?”

“Kagami and Sasuke. A girl and a boy.” She could say this much, couldn’t she? Her eyes didn’t meet the Nekobaa’s as she continued to rock Saya. Thanks to the steady motion, the infant began to doze off again.

“Ah. I knew a Sasuke once,” the Nekobaa said, sounding nostalgic. Akira made a point to hold her tongue.

_The fewer people who know, the better,_ she reminded herself.

“It’s time for Saya’s lunch,” the Nekobaa continued, giving Akira a nod. “Your job for these next few days will largely be to help out with Saya. Your dog-like friend will be doing the majority of assisting my granddaughter with the shop.”

The Nekobaa showed her to the kitchen, where she pointed out the necessary items such as bibs and formula before mentioning she had something to do and disappearing.

Akira began by tying a shawl around herself to serve as a sling, and instinct took over from there. Amid dodging several felines at her feet, Akira prepared a bottle of formula for Saya and, by the time she sat down, Kiba and Tamaki had returned.

“I’m telling you, Akamaru will be fine by himself for a few hours!” she heard Tamaki say, her voice raised. She and Kiba were walking through the kitchen towards the dining room, where Akira sat cross-legged on the floor in front of the table.

“But outside? He belongs in here, with me!”

“You’re the one who assured me he wouldn’t run away,” Tamaki said flatly, and, by now, Akira could see them. It took a moment, but they noticed her.

“Why do you have a baby?” Kiba raised an eyebrow and pointed.

Before Akira could answer, Tamaki burst out saying, “Saya!” and scurried over to where Akira sat. “I see you two have been acquainted,” Tamaki grinned. Akira nodded, then turned back to Kiba.

“It appears my main job will be to take care of her, and yours will be take help out with the shop.” Kiba looked surprised, which meant he didn’t know.

Akira turned her head again when she felt something brush against her and turned to see a black and gray tabby rubbing against her side.

_Looks like there’s no escaping all this cat hair,_ Akira lamented. At least all her clothes weren’t black this time around.

“Feel free to have a seat,” Tamaki motioned Kiba to the table. “I’ll start on lunch. We can get you introduced to the shop after that.”

Lunch was admittedly delicious, and Tamaki had been kind enough to take Saya for a few minutes so Akira could eat. After lunch, everyone headed to the shop for introductions. Even if it wouldn’t be her main job, Akira understood why they felt the need to introduce her.

For today, Akira was assigned inventory and Kiba register duty. During that time, Akira detected the unfamiliar voice and chakra presence of a customer.

_That was fast…_

Much to Akira’s surprise, they had a fairly steady influx of customers, at least according to what she sensed. Saya remained fairly docile throughout, and Akira only had to leave the stock room once to ask Tamaki where the supplies were to change Saya’s diaper.

_A vacation from my own kids to take care of someone else’s,_ Akira mentally sighed as she refastened a new diaper onto the pale girl’s waistline. She had no idea how to explain this to Kaname or Eri for that matter.

Could she manage to find a proper family to love and care for this girl back in Konoha? What about any potential kekki genkai? Would she be forced to endanger another family and potentially this little one with that kind of knowledge? What about Tsunade? Would she know what to do?

In the least, she had three days to decide.

The shop closed at six, which allowed everyone a break for dinner. Tamaki volunteered to cook again, and by now the Nekobaa had returned from whatever errands had occupied her time. Akira knew better than to ask at this point.

With Saya still tied to her via shawl, Akira helped Tamaki and Kiba with the dishes and prepare the shop for the following day. The Nekobaa, meanwhile, resumed her sitting position on the ground where Akira had first met her, surrounded by felines.

“So how did the boy do on his first day, Tamaki?” The Nekobaa inquired. Thankfully, out of consideration for Saya, she refrained from smoking this time.

“We had a little trouble with the register, but overall, it was good!” Tamaki chirped, but Kiba, clearly not cut out for retail, snarled at a few cats threatening to sit on his lap. Akira, on the other hand, welcomed a pudgy orange tabby to nestle between the gap in her crossed legs.

Two hours later, with the shop finally ready for business the following day, Kiba left to be with Akamaru, who had been in the unfortunate company of felines all day.

Akira played with Saya a bit before bed, using a squeaky toy she’d found purposefully hidden in a drawer where cats couldn’t reach. Saya laughed and giggled until becoming exhausted enough for a bath and then bed. It was 8:30 by the time Akira didn’t have a child tied to her for the first time since they arrived.

She certainly didn’t resent Konan for putting her in this situation. It was inconvenient, but Akira understood why. She hoped this little girl could have a better life than her mother, one where she didn’t have to see so much death and end up so stoic.

Akira tried to picture an image of a younger version of Konan, one that was smiling and happy. She promptly failed and quickly directed her thoughts elsewhere.

Akira’s assigned sleeping space that night was in the room with Saya. Despite the numerous hallways, the area didn’t have many bedrooms, and this way Akira wouldn’t have to worry about having a baby monitor. Admittedly, she would have to be careful not to wake Saya, but that was the sort of thing she was used to.

The following day began bright and early at 6 a.m. Breakfast was at 6:30 a.m. Saya had only woken Akira once with her crying and then gone right back to sleep after approximately fifteen minutes of rocking and a small lullaby she’d grown accustomed to humming for Kagami and Sasuke when either of them became fussy.

Tamaki provided their meal once again and held Saya for a few minutes to allow Akira time to eat. From there, their first customer showed up at seven. Akira hid in the stock room organizing while Kiba maintained the register.

Fewer mistakes were made today, Akira observed, because she heard much less swearing and frustrated murmurings from Kiba’s direction.

Tamaki ran off for a moment to feed the cats and change some of the many, many litter boxes that Akira guessed were there, which was fair, considering the only excrement Akira had to deal with was Saya’s.

However, despite that little positive, life did not remain easy. For Akira’s lunch break, Saya suddenly decided that she did not want to stop crying. To keep from startling customers, Tamaki had suggested that Akira take her outside to the garden in the back, and, after Tamaki showed her where to go, Akira complied.

It made sense to Akira for these people to have a garden, but this one was unlike anything she’d ever seen in Konoha, even at the Yamanaka flower shop. They grew far more than just flowers here. Edible plants like carrots, radishes, and tomatoes comprised easily half the massive garden. The plants were impressively well-maintained for the number cats who lived here and likely gnawed at the leaves and vegetables.

Akiar paced the perimeter, humming a drowned out tune to the squalling lump of flesh tied to her torso. So far, this wasn’t working.

Saya had only just been fed. She wasn’t wet and nothing had hit or bumped her, so why was she crying?

Akira continued to meander until she found her way to an area of freshly dug earth, but, oddly enough, no vegetables were planted here. Clusters of flowers surrounded the area, but none were directly planted, either.

“That’s where we buried her,” a voice behind her said, and, in her curiosity, Akira had failed to notice the Nekobaa coming to join her.

“She loved it out here,” the Nekobaa said. “Especially when I reassigned her here instead of the shop. Even the day before Saya was born, she was still out here, helping me.”

“I never knew Konan was into gardening,” Akira remarked, breathing a silent sigh of relief that Saya had finally quieted.

The Nekobaa chuckled.

“I wouldn’t exactly say that Konan was ‘into’ gardening. More so entranced by it. She loved flowers. Apparently she came from a village with too much water for most things to grow properly.”

“Amegakure,” Akira said, her eyes scanning the human-sized mound of dirt. “I guess it makes sense when you put it like that.”

“Feel free to come out here whenever you like. Saya enjoys it here, too.” And with that, the Nekobaa was gone again.

_Guess that means it’s time to get back to work again,_ Akira mentally sighed.

The rest of the day passed quickly enough, and, after that, Saya was well-behaved again. Even more surprisingly, Akamaru had become accustomed to all the cats enough to come inside during the day. He lay half-awake on the floor beside Kiba, who sat behind the cashier’s counter.

“Slow day today?” Akira inquired, walking over to the boy who looked bored out of his collective mind. Saya had just been put down for a nap, so Akira had a few minutes before she would go to check on her.

“Just a lull,” Kiba admitted, momentarily stooping to pat Akamaru on the head. “How about you?”

“Saya’s been fairly well-behaved aside from one instance this afternoon.”

“So what exactly is the story with this kid? Like, why’d they request you to take care of her?”

“She’s an orphan that the Nekobaa took in,” Akira explained, making sure to be as vague as possible. “I guess I was requested because I’m used to this sort of thing with the twins and all.”

“Oh yeah. You have two kids,” Kiba remembered. “I’ve seen Hinata with them a few times.”

“She’s a very valuable babysitter when Taisu’s not available,” Akira admitted, for once, happy to steer the conversation toward her children. “Kagami and Sasuke aren’t much older than this little one.”

“You’re definitely not from Konoha,” Kiba muttered, and Akira knew he meant with her son’s name. Rather than defending her choice, she chose to ignore the comment.

“Hey,” the duo turned to see Tamaki returning to join them, for once at an opportune time. “What’d I miss?”

Akira smiled. “Nothing much.”

A few more customers came before closing time, some of them shinobi, but most of them civilian. Akira retrieved Saya from her nap and Tamaki lingered to hang out with Kiba by the cash register. All in all, this was a good day.

Akira went to bed early with Saya that night. Tomorrow was their last day helping out here, and tomorrow afternoon they were due to return to Konoha.

Breakfast that next morning was especially fun. The conversations were enjoyable and everyone laughed a lot. Saya drank her formula without any fuss and the Nekobaa joined them to eat this time. Despite their initial argumentative encounter, Kiba and Tamaki seemed to be getting along especially well.

Afternoon came far too quickly. A few customers came and went, most of them shinobi this time. But, by the time they were supposed to leave, no one else was there.

“Akira!” the Nekobaa called her name as the Hyuuga girl fastened her travelling backpack, having handed slumbering Saya to Tamaki to enable her actions. “Have you thought about my offer?”

Akira sighed, knowing that although it may not be the wisest decision, she’d already made up her mind.

“I have decided to take Saya with me back to Konoha to find her a family and, if not, raise her myself,” Akira replied, her voice confident. Kiba raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Akira continued, “I’m assuming that’s what you meant?”

The Nekobaa nodded, but wasn’t done.

“One more thing,” she added, and, for what, Akira had no idea. “Tamaki,” she began, “I want you to go with these people. To Konoha.”

The trio responded with a chorus of “WHAT?”

“I can manage this job well-enough on my own. You’ve been a huge help to me, child, but I’ve been waiting for an opportunity for you to have something more than this.”

“You want me to go to Konoha?” Tamaki echoed, clearly stunned. By now, Akira had taken Saya back from her. “But this is all I’ve ever known!”

“Exactly! You should have more than this. Ever since your mother Naomi passed, you’ve been stuck here. You should be able to see more things than this dying village. We’re all that’s left here. You deserve friends your own age.” Akira noted Tamaki’s eyes flick toward Kiba at her grandmother’s last sentence.

“B-but where will I go?” Tamaki blubbered. She didn’t exactly look sad. Just overwhelmed.

“My mom and sister own a veterinary clinic,” Kiba spoke up. “I’ve seen how good you are will the animals here. We could definitely use the help.”

“Really?” Now, Tamaki looked excited.

“It’s fine with me,” Akira shrugged as best the infant in her arms would allow. “Besides, after the war, Konoha needs all the help it can get.”

“And there’s plenty of stray cats,” Kiba added. Akamaru barked in agreement.

“I have to pack my things!” Tamaki exclaimed, and then assured, “I don’t have much. It won’t take long!”

And it didn’t. The Nekobaa paid them “Extra for all the trouble,” and within the next hour, everyone’s bags were packed. Tamaki hugged her grandmother goodbye and promised to visit, and they were off.

“Not exactly how I expected this mission to turn out,” Kiba admitted. Tamaki powered ahead of them, Akamaru trotting behind her. The same civilian boat that had brought them here in the first place waited up ahead to take them back to Konoha.

“It is what it is,” Akira concurred. When they reached the boat, Kiba used some of the excess money from the Nekobaa to pay for Saya and Tamaki’s fare, and, within three hours, they had returned to the Land of Fire.

Tsunade was surprised, to say in the least, at the extra people brought back with them, but then muttered something about being “used to it with Naruto” and waved them on.

Akira would explain the story behind Saya later to Tsunade when the time was right. She would understand. After everything that had happened, she had to.

Out of the hokage’s tower, Kiba and Akamaru disappeared with Tamaki to introduce her to the rest of their family, and Akira headed back home, Saya in toe.

Through some stroke of luck, she avoided running into anyone she knew her entire way back to the apartment, which was empty. Eri must be elsewhere with Riku and Akira already knew Taisou had the twins.

Akira fixed another bottle for Saya’s evening meal, changed her diaper, and then set her down in the twins’ living room playpen. At least for now, Akira had a chance to plan.

What Akira didn’t expect, however, was to fall asleep sitting up against the cushions on her living room couch as she watched Saya. It was the doorbell, oddly enough, that roused her.

The Hyuuga girl jolted awake, not knowing how long it had been, and breathed sigh of relief when she noticed Saya had fallen asleep, as well.

When the bell rang again, Akira scurried to answer the door.

Kaname greeted her with a smile and several boxes of what was likely dinner. A wedding ring glistened on the Whirlpool kunoichi’s left hand as she held up the boxes for Akira to see.

“Hey, may I come in?” her friend inquired. With how happy she looked, marital bliss was serving her well.

Akira opened her mouth to reply, but a sharp cry cut her off. Somehow, in the few seconds she’d taken to answer the door, Saya had awoken.

“The twins are here?” Kaname questioned.

Akira shook her head apologetically, saying, “It’s a long story.”

The dinner boxes were set on the table, but Kaname attention quickly diverted to the wailing month-old.

“May I?” Akira immediately inferred Kaname’s request to hold her.

Akira nodded, waving her hand with a “By all means,” and Kaname scooped up the infant.

“Hey,” she smiled at Saya, rocking her back and forth as Akira had done. “What’s your name?”

“Saya,” Akira answered with a small smile. Through some miracle, Saya had begun to quiet again.

“Are you babysitting?”

“Not exactly.” Akira laughed nervously.

By the time Akira finished explaining, the two of them were sitting on the couch and Saya had fallen back asleep in Kaname’s arms.

“So…. This is the daughter of Akatsuki’s leader?”

“Fake leader, but close enough.”

“Hm.” Kaname’s eyebrow knitted together, although from what emotion, Akira couldn’t tell.

“With Konan dead, there’s no one else I can trust to take care of her,” Akira admitted. “I don’t know what kind of kekki genkai this kid is going to have, and I don’t want to inadvertently punish her by putting her with a family who would hate her for it.”

“I see.” Kaname seemed thoughtful, but unphased. “Another Akatsuki baby.” With all that had already happened to them, Kaname was probably used to it.

“Pretty much.” Akira let out a sigh. “Hopefully, the last.”

“Does Eri know?”

Akira shook her head. “I just got here.”

The room went silent. Kaname gazed down at the child with adoration in her emerald eyes, and then said, “I could take her.”

“Eh?”

“Makoto and I have been talking about having kids,” Kaname admitted. “I mean, this is a lot sooner than we intended. I would have to talk to him about it first, but I can’t see him refusing. Although, I’ll probably have to keep her backstory on a need-to-know basis.”

“Kaname…” Akira was speechless. She hadn’t even considered this possibility.

“I know enough about Akatsuki that I would know what to watch out for. As for kekki genkai, you and Eri can help me out with looking for that.” Kaname glanced at Akira to smile and then turned back to Saya. “She’s perfect. I can see her fitting in just fine with Riku and the twins.”

Akira couldn’t help but shake her head in disbelief. Against all odds, Kaname laughed.

“Eri’s gonna love this!” she grinned.


	49. Chapter 49

(Five years later…)

“Okay, time for bed, you two,” Akira called, hand on her hip. Her two raven-haired children hid beneath haphazardly lain covers, clearly playing, instead of preparing for bed like they were supposed to be doing. But, rather than continuing to scold them, Akira joined in.

“Do I see a… Sasuke!” With a playful smile, Akira seized the covers to reveal her grinning son. Kagami had tried to escape by sneaking off the side of the bed, but ruined the effort when she landed on her mother’s foot instead of the floor.

With Sasuke already tackled in an embrace, Akira lifted her leg to bring a sheepish-looking Kagami up to waist-level.

“All right, _actually_ time for bed this time,” Akira emphasized, smoothing out the tousled covers and replacing pillows that had been knocked to the floor.

The twins gave her looks of disappointment, but, despite their chorus of “Awwws,” they obeyed.

Akira pulled the covers up to Kagami’s chin, ruffled Sasuke’s hair, and headed to the door to turn off the light.

“Ne, Kaa-chan?” Sauke spoke up before she could flip the switch, and Akira glanced back to see two eager pairs of gray eyes staring up at her.

“What is it, Sasuke? Do you need a nightlight?”

“No, I just wanted ask you something.”

“What is it?”

They paused, glancing at each other, and this time Kagami spoke.

“How come we don’t have a dad?” she blurted.

Akira froze. She’d expected this question. She’d answered it for others hundreds of times, but never to them. And no matter how many times she’d rehearsed this scene in her head, absolutely nothing sensible came to her mind to say.

“You just don’t, sweetie.”

“Why not?”

“Riku doesn’t have a dad,” Akira reasoned, attempting a comparison.

“But that’s Riku. He always says he doesn’t need one.” Sasuke pouted. “Besides, Saya has one. How come _we_ don’t?”

Akira’s mind drew a blank. She couldn’t expect them to not ask questions, especially this one.

“He’s… not around.”

“Why?”

“Did he not want us?” Sasuke’s voice sounded fearful. Akira felt like screaming.

“No, he’s—your father passed away. Long before either of you were born.”

“How?”

_I just can’t win, can I?_ Akira fought to keep her expression neutral and took a moment to compose herself. “It’s not that your daddy didn’t love you.”

Akira could still remember the joy she felt at her last goodbye with Itachi after he appeared thanks to the power given to Naruto. The warmth of his lips, his hand on what had been her pregnant belly, and their final embrace—he’d loved her. He’d loved the twins without even getting to hold them. Life had just been nothing but unfair.

“I’ll tell you when you’re older.” It was a cop-out and Akira knew it, but she couldn’t expect a five-year-old, even if it was Itachi’s child, to understand the complexity of the situation. Not just that, she didn’t want them to grow up resenting the village that had robbed them of their father—or worse, their uncle who had done so directly.

Understandably, both of them were disappointed, but Akira stifled her guilt, wished them good night once more, and finally turned off the light.

Akira sighed as she descended the stairs from the twins’ bedroom.

She should have been more prepared for a question like that. In an attempt to help her decompress, she made herself a cup of tea in the kitchen. Tsunade had been quite generous to move her to a townhome rather than another apartment.

Akira sat cross-legged at her table in the other room directly next to the kitchen. Her hands enclosed around the steaming cup as the tea steeped.

Her eyelids were heavy, but Akira knew she had a lot more work to do before she could justify sleeping. She sipped her tea, but remained unaware of the red-eyed individual watching her every move.

-

Tobi watched the blonde Hyuuga from his position outside the window, eye tracking her figure with interest. Zetsu had done well with his mission—albeit not his only mission—of keeping an eye on her, but now Tobi was here in person.

_Here it goes…_

The Uchiha teleported into the Hyuuga girl’s house, his chakra cloaked. She remained seated at her table, formerly sipping her tea but now nodding off. She was so exhausted, in fact, that she didn’t even notice his presence until after a few seconds.

“Akira.” She jolted awake and her eyes shot open, byakugan activated. She jumped to her feet, instinctively forming a defensive stance.

The Uchiha smirked beneath his mask. She seemed to sense it.

“What do you want?” she demanded.

“Of all the places you could have chosen to run, why Konoha?”

She remained in her stance, eyes narrowed.

“No matter. I have business with you.”

She said nothing.

“I want you to come back as Akatsuki’s healer—”

“Absolutely not.”

“Your little ones could come along. They’d even be properly trained.” Her eyes narrowed further at his words. “What, you really think I didn’t know about your little secret?” Tobi chuckled. “Becoming the hokage’s second apprentice wasn’t exactly the best way to stay out of the public eye.”

“You stay the hell away from them!”

She had barely heard a word he said. “Now, now,” Obito raised his hands pacifistically and resurrected his Tobi voice, “I know better than to get between a mother and her children.”

“Hya!” Akira attacked him, but her open palm went right through him, as most attacks did.

“I want your answer by tomorrow. At the village gate. Midnight.” He began to disappear. “You know the consequences should you decide not to show.” His voice echoed but his form was gone.

Akira was alone now.

-

Akira panted, her heart racing more from fear than actual exertion.

Madara had been here, in her house. And not just that—

Akira bolted up the stairs back to the twins’ room. There chakras felt stable, but she had to be sure. She finally relaxed when she saw them both undisturbed in their beds, as if nothing had happened.

She walked back down the stairs, her mind processing the information.

Madara was here. In Konoha. He was alive and he knew about the twins. Had Kisame told him?

Their last meeting had ben peaceful, understanding. Kisame wasn’t the type to betray confidence. That only left Mdara finding out either himself or through Zetsu.

He latter would make sense. Zetsu was a scout, he knew how to get into places undetected. But did that mean he knew about Riku? Saya?

With his kind of power, even if she told Tsunade, there was little she could do without starting a village-wide panic. And if she told anyone about what she had seen, no doubt Madara would resort to harming the twins. She knew full well what his final threat entailed.

_“You know the consequences should you decide not to show.”_  Didn’t exactly take someone of Itachi’s genius to figure that one out.

Akira sat back down at her living room table, her tea long forgotten.

What the hell was she supposed to do?

-

Tobi reappeared back at one of Akatsuki’s newer hideouts. It wasn’t “new” per say, but it was less than three years old, which qualified as new in his opinion.

Zetsu was nowhere to be seen, but Kisame was here.

“Madara,” the shark’s gravelly tone greeted him.

“Hello, Kisame. Finished your mission, I see?”

“Of course. I went undetected, as instructed.” Obito smirked at the shark’s words. Letting the world think that they were either dead or at least off the grid was crucial. They couldn’t be detected, no matter what it took. “How was your night?” Kisame countered. Awfully casual of him to ask, but…

“Oh. I was in Konoha paying a visit to an old acquaintance.”

Kisame raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t they all supposed to believe you’re dead?”

“Not exactly.” He paused for effect. “Do you remember Hyuuga Akira?”

Kisame went silent, but only for a moment.

“The healer?” he managed.

“Itachi’s lover. The one Deidara was foolish enough to bring.” It was subtle, but Kisame displayed a twitch of emotion at his words, and Tobi knew why.

“I know about Akira’s twins, Kisame. And I also know that you refrained from telling me about them.”

“How long?” Kisame didn’t seem fearful in the slightest.  He looked amused, if anything.

“Zetsu discovered her a little while after she moved to Konoha and became the hokage’s second apprentice. You are correct that I intended to kill her from there, but then Zetsu found out she was pregnant. I’m not stupid, Kisame, I know what went on with her and Itachi.”

“Itachi didn’t know about the twins. Akira moved to Konoha of her own volition after he died.”

“I suspected as much.” Tobi chuckled. “What she divulged to the hokage did little to stop the invasion. That failed on its own. Still, it seems Itachi’s brother and I are not the only Uchihas left alive.” Admittedly, the younger Uchiha had since married that Haruno girl and had a son of his own—Isao, he believed the boy was named—but he was young. Much younger and less impressionable than Akira’s twins.

“Why didn’t you kill them if you knew? Or me for that matter, since I didn’t tell you?”

“You are far too valuable to me, Kisame, to allow one minor detail to change that. I understand your presumption that I would have chosen to kill Akira rather than allow her to birth another Uchiha. Or two, in this case.”

“So what do you intend for Akira now?”

“Itachi was four when he received his first taste of war. The twins are five. They are old enough to join the academy and therefore old enough for me to begin training them.”

“And you think Akira is going to stand for that?”

“I have given her little choice. If she wishes to remain with her children, she will return to being Akatsuki’s healer. Even with as few of us as there are, we could always use one.”

“So what’s the plan?”

“I am meeting with her tomorrow at midnight to hear her answer. If she agrees, we’ll go from there. If she doesn’t, I’ll have Zetsu at the ready to take the twins and I will bring her by force. My sharingan does possess mind control abilities, but it is much less troublesome if I do not have to use them.”

Kisame shook his head and chuckled disbelievingly. “Whatever you say, Madara.”

-

The next day, Akira knew she was being paranoid, but she just didn’t care. She had a morning shift scheduled for her at the hospital, so she called in sick and convinced Eri to take the twins to the academy with Riku. Although inconvenient, considering they did not live as closely as they did before, Akira felt the lie was worth it. Her friends didn’t need to be endangered, too.

For good measure, Akira placed a water clone on her bed, just in case someone came back to check on her, and spent the rest of the day in stealth. As much as Akira wasn’t proud of it, she cloaked her chakra, activated her byakugan, and watched the twins from afar.

It wasn’t so much that she didn’t trust the skill of those at the academy, she just knew especially well what to look for when it came to Akatsuki, or so Akira told herself.

It calmed her nerves, she had to admit, just watching them. Her children were as bright as they came, and it brought a smile to Akira’s lips to constantly see them raising their hands and correctly answering questions. During playtime, they were with Saya and Riku, playing a ninja version of tag. They excelled, as she knew they would. As she feared they would.

Nothing happened while they were at the academy. Eri came and picked everyone up along with Kaname, who greeted her husband with a kiss on the cheek. They were both headed to a later hospital shift that afternoon, leaving Taisou to watch everyone, including Saya and Riku. Hinata had a daughter of her own now and couldn’t watch the twins as often. Somehow, even with all four of them, Taisou did well when it came to babysitting.

Nightfall came faster than Akira intended. Her clone had done enough to convince everyone that she was indeed sick, but that only bought her time. She knew what Madara intended for her, and she knew full well what he was capable of. Still, something in her hesitated.

No matter what she did, Akira doubted she would be able to live with herself.

By now, midnight approached and Akira headed for the village gate, clad in her usual blue ninja outfit with black spandex underneath. With her byakugan activated, she found the village guards unsurprisingly unconscious. Two sets of familiar chakra presences were already there, waiting for her.

“See, Kisame? I told you she would be here.” Akira recognized the Uchiha’s grating tone.

“You were right, Madara.” Akira wished she could say she was happy to see the shark again, considering their last encounter, but she wasn’t. Right now, they were enemies.

“I guess I should at least thank you that the guards are unconscious and not dead.” Sarcasm dripped heavily in her tone, but Tobi didn’t comment.

Instead, he said, “Have you thought about my offer?”

Akira swallowed. Her fists clenched. Against her better judgment, she deactivated her byakugan.

Rather than looking Madara in the eye and being captured in an illusion, she fixated her gaze on one of the red clouds on his chest.

“The answer is no, Madara.”

And, in all the confusion, the three of them failed to notice a fourth figure heading toward them from beyond the village gate. A figure with spiked black hair and red eyes.

-

Uchiha Sasuke walked back from his scouting mission with an even stride as he approached the village gate, eyes scanning.

This was such a pain, but probation was probation. Scout the perimeter five nights a week and report back to Kakashi. He was halfway through his assigned ten years of this. That was just how things went. But, for the first time in quite a while, something wasn’t right. Chakra cloaked, Sasuke receded into the foliage.

There were three presences, presences that shouldn’t be there. It was a miracle none of them had sensed him yet. He didn’t recognize the first one, but the other two— there was no way.

_Madara and Kisame!_

Five years of pent up rage began to return as Sasuke’s fingers gripped the hilt of his blade. The weapon lay secured in his belt, but not for long.

Madara was alive—how was this possible?

His weapon unsheathed. Lightning crackled as he poured chakra into the blade.

Reporting to Kakashi would have to wait.

-

“Are you sure this is the path you wish to choose, Akira?” Madara questioned, his tone mysterious. “This is your last chance to change your mind.”

“I would never join you willingly, Madara.”

The Uchiha opened his mouth to say something, but he stopped short. Akira noticed when he turned his head away from her. She, in turn, reactivated her byakugan. Likely, she saw it now.

“We’re not alone.” Was all he managed. Then all hell broke loose.

“MADARA!” Lightning crackled and an unmistakable Uchiha burst into the scene, headed straight for the elder Uchiha. And he would have hit him, too, had he the sense to predict his teleportation.

In a split second, Tobi gripped the hem of Kisame’s robes and, just before Sasuke’s blade would have “impaled” him, Tobi teleported both himself and Kisame away from the scene.

Tobi reached his destination away from Sasuke in a split second. Despite the short time, Kisame was surprised and stumbled a bit, requiring a moment to regain his balance.

“Forgot you could do that,” that shark remarked, clearly disoriented, considering it hasn’t happened in a very long time.

“It takes a lot of chakra. I can’t do it very often over such a long distance.” This much, in the least, was true. Bringing another person with him to teleport somewhere out of sight was hell on his chakra reserves, especially someone with as much chakra as Kisame.

Tobi didn’t give Kisame long to comment further, because the true Akatsuki leader interjected with, “Meet me back at the base. I’ll deal with this,” formed a hand sign and disappeared again.

Kisame let out an exasperated sigh and shook his head. “Leave it to Itachi’s younger brother to fuck everything up again,” he muttered.

-

Metal clashed against metal. Akira was the only one left in Sasuke’s path and all she had to block him with were kunai, leaving her face inches from the crackle of deadly lightning.

“What the hell,” she managed, struggling against his strike, “are you doing here?!”

Sasuke didn’t reply, but he glared. Clearly, he didn’t recognize her. The two momentarily retreated in opposite directions to regroup, and, as the Hyuuga girl settled into a stance, she knew she was in for quite a fight.

Akira hadn’t been this close to Itachi’s brother in a long time. She’d seen him from afar a few times with Sakura and once in a while with Isao, but not this close, never this close—not since the invasion.

“Anyone who so much associates with Madara is an enemy of mine!” Sasuke snarled. Akira knew better than to look in his eyes. She knew full well what he could do.

“I am not your enemy!” Akira growled, blocking blow after blow that he threw at her. One strike in particular cut particularly close, nicking the Hyuuga girl’s cheek and catching on the long chain of her necklace, which, although typically tucked into her shirt, had come free during the fight. Akira shot backward to get away from Sasuke, but the chain broke as a result and her necklace fell to the ground.

Akira’s eyes narrowed. Now, she was pissed _._

It was bad enough having to look at her own kids and see glimpses of Itachi in them every day, but the Sasuke she looked at now was old enough to easily pass for his brother. Except for the rage. Itachi had been angry before—angry, but never completely out of control. This boy was out of control.

Sasuke used a fire jutsu next. She recognized the hand signs before he even finished the technique. He seemed genuinely surprised when she used the rotation to counter, and she took full advantage of that surprise.

She sped forward, kunai in hand and eyes fixed on her target. She couldn’t let rage control her—she had to stay calm. She was pissed, but she wasn’t livid; there was a difference. One little slit to this boy’s jugular and this was all over. She knew she couldn’t last long in a fight against him. Killing him was the only way she could get home to her children, Kagami and—

She stopped short. The kunai hovered millimeters from the Uchiha’s throat.

Sasuke. Kagami and Sasuke. Could she really kill her child’s namesake? Even in self-defense?

Something crackled and Akira felt warm blood splatter onto the blue material of her ninja outfit. But the blood wasn’t Sasuke’s.

“Die.”

It was hers.

She didn’t know how, but Sasuke had stabbed her. Clean through, from behind. The silver tip of the blade protruded from her abdomen. Had all that been an illusion?

The blade turned within her, releasing the body’s natural air lock and then was pulled away. He didn’t electrocute her, but he’d done his damage.

Blood spurted from her wound and in streaks from her mouth. She was on the ground now. Akira didn’t even remember falling. With her hair in her face, she couldn’t see very well, either. All she felt was pain, but she heard something. Someone had returned.

From her half-obscured, sideways vision, she recognized a pair of sandals and further confirmed her suspicion upon hearing the figure’s voice.

“Sasuke, Sasuke.” It was Tobi. She felt the elder Uchiha’s gaze on her. “What have you done?”

-

He’d only been away for a minute. He hadn’t needed to see everything to know what had happened. The blood on Sasuke’s blade told enough.

“You’re next.” Sasuke’s eyes fixated on him, full of hate. Akira’s blood dripped onto the ground from Sasuke’s weapon, but Tobi also noted a small nick on the side of Sasuke’s neck, where it looked like Akira had managed to cut him.

That didn’t make sense. How was Sasuke still standing if Akira had gotten that close? And then it hit him.

_She didn’t…_ Madara shook his head, realizing the situation.

She’d spared him, hadn’t she? She’d had a chance to end it, to get revenge for every ounce of grief this boy had caused her, and she’d passed it by.

Sasuke charged at him with a head on slash, but it didn’t work. Tobi effortlessly dodged Sasuke’s first attempt and then phased through his next attack as he made his way over to the Hyuuga girl.

This hadn’t been part of the plan. Sasuke wasn’t supposed to be here.

Sasuke tried to attack him a third time, but his strike bounced off against something else. Kisame stood in front of the Uchiha, brandishing Samehada.

“You do realize when I give you an order you’re supposed to follow it?” Madara was thankful he had his mask to conceal the amused smile twisted on his lips.

“Didn’t feel like missing all the action.” At this, Madara chuckled. Not once, but twice Kisame had deliberately disobeyed orders for this woman. Normally, he’d be furious.

By now, Tobi knelt beside the fallen Hyuuga, which allowed him to examine her injuries more thoroughly. She lay on her side, her face in the dirt. Her breathing was choppy and her eyes half-lidded. It was a miracle she remained conscious.

“Just be sure not to kill him,” Madara said, his gloved hands carefully prying Akira’s fingers away from her midsection. Kisame grunted an affirmative, still preoccupied with Sasuke.

_This isn’t good._ Sasuke had hit one of her vitals. Tobi couldn’t save her with what he knew. If she was going to have even a chance at survival, she would require a hospital, and that only left one option.

Without further hesitation, the Uchiha quickly but carefully repositioned the Hyuuga girl into a sitting positon, supported by one of his arms. This allowed him to bend her legs enough to snake his other arm beneath them.

“Brace yourself, Akira-san. This may hurt.”

Before she could gurgle a response, the Uchiha rose to his feet, carrying the Hyuuga girl. She cried out at the sudden movement, but his grip was secure enough that he didn’t drop her. Admittedly, if she had the wherewithal to put her arms around his neck, this could be a hell of a lot easier, but this situation was turning out to be anything but ideal.

Obito jumped into the air, and they were off.

-

Wind whipped Akira faced as they travelled. Her body screamed in agony at every move, especially the landings as Tobi jumped from tree to tree. Both of her hands, now sticky with her own blood, pressed over her injury in a vain attempt to slow the bleeding. So much for being in shock. She couldn’t remember the last time something had hurt this much. Not just that…

“What are you… doing?” she finally managed, but immediately regretted talking when she felt the pain shoot through her system. One of her hands clutched the wound. The other gripped the front of Tobi’s cloak.

“You’ll die if I don’t get you to a hospital,” Tobi said simply. Her mind was in a jumble. “Try not to move if you can.”

She couldn’t say anything. All she could do was think.

_What the hell is going on?_ And, on that thought, she lost consciousness.

-

Shizune paced the halls of the Konohagakure hospital, supervising as she should. It was quiet, all things considered. They would always be injured people, but this was turning out to be a promising night.

A scream ripped through the air.

Or so she thought.

The former hokage’s assistant sprinted to the source of the sound. The scream had been from one of the nurses, Fukami Aya. What could possibly be so disturbing that someone who lived through the Konoha invasion would—?

Her thoughts came to a screeching stop when she reached the entrance of the hospital. The first thing she noticed was a flash of red on black— _red_ clouds. Akatsuki…

It was Madara. A red eye glared at Shizune from behind a familiar orange mask, but, at least for now, her focus diverted. In this monster’s arms lay a figure she knew only too well.

_Akira…_ What the hell was she doing with him? But, before Shizune could bark anything threats to the man, Madara spoke for her.

“This woman needs medical attention, NOW!”

The Uchiha stepped forward, Akira still in toe. The nurses nearby were understandably terrified. There were only three of them—Gina, Aya, and Sara, and they weren’t strong ninja.

Why’s and how’s would have to wait. Madara finally terrified the trio enough for Sara to run and acquire the nearest gurney. When she returned, the Uchiha placed the Hyuuga girl onto the mobile bed with surprisingly gentleness, but Shizune had no time to question it.

Madara stepped away, and Shizune rushed forward to examine Akira’s injuries.

Judging by the way she bled and the area Akira held, she’d hit something bad. Shizune turned to the three nurses. “Get this woman into surgery immediately! And someone inform her family!”

“Yes, Shizune!” Aya and Sara spoke in unison before rushing away while Gina went to acquire Akira’s emergency contacts.

Shizune turned back to where Madara had been standing for further confrontation, but to no avail.

He was gone.

-

Samehada clashed against Sasuke’s blade with an odd-sounding clang. Not quite metallic, just different.

The Uchiha’s blade still bore traces of Akira’s blood.

Even after five years with Konoha’s indoctrination, this kid was a loose kunai. The slightest thing had just proved to set him off. Peace hadn’t changed him. Marriage hadn’t changed him. Hell, even fatherhood had done nothing to help him. It appeared he was just better at hiding whatever was wrong with him now.

“Where is Madara? How did he survive?!” Sasuke demanded.

_Good,_ Kisame thought. His silence only seem to make the boy angrier. Kisame dodged another slice, countering Sasuke’s strike with a bludgeon of his own. Sadly, it didn’t hit.

Madara had long since left with Akira. One way or another, it had been long enough that his job was done. Kisame ended the fight with a well-placed strike to Sasuke’s head using the skull-shaped hilt of his weapon. It hadn’t been full strength, so he wouldn’t die, but it would definitely make the kid’s head spin.

The sheer force of the strike pummeled Sasuke into the ground and knocked the lightning blade out of his hand. Kisame smirked at the sight of the young Uchiha lying face down in the dirt, unconscious, much like the village guards nearby them at the gate. The only difference being, those two would not have an unsightly bruise when they awoke.

Samehada returned to its harness. Kisame lamented her inability to consume this troublesome boy’s chakra, but orders were orders, even if he had disobeyed the one from earlier.

With that, Kisame left, all the while failing to notice that Sasuke had fallen beside a familiar red charm—a red charm that had previously hung around a certain blonde Hyuuga girl’s neck.

-

“Akira-san’s family has been notified. Hyuuga Taisou should be here any minute,” Gina informed. At this, Shizune breathed a sigh of relief.

Akira had been in surgery for nearly an hour. Although she was a supervisor, Shizune wasn’t a top surgeon. Right now that was Sakura, and Shizune knew she was doing everything she could to save Akira.

_And hopefully get some answers,_ Shizune mentally added, sighing aloud. She hoped word of this didn’t get out. The last thing they needed right now was village-wide panic.

Another hour passed and, within that time, Akira’s family arrived. Taisou and the twins had been conveniently together when Gina called. The elder Hyuuga spotted Shizune as he strode into the hallway paralleling the operating room and quickly made his way over to her, Kagami and Sasuke in tow.

“I came as soon as I heard.” Worry showed clearly in Taisou’s expression through glazed eyes and pinched eyebrows. “Any word?”

Shizune shook her head. “I don’t even know what she was doing out this late, let alone…” she trailed off.

“Let alone?” Taisou’s echoed, then, realizing his interruption, quickly shut his mouth and waited for her to finish. The twins looked at her with puzzled gray eyes. Shizune opened her mouth to continue, but quickly decided against it.

“I’ll explain later. Make yourselves comfortable. This could take a while.”

-

Akira slowly opened her eyes. She could see light, but nothing focused and _everything_ hurt.

Something beeped. At last, her vision focused enough to make out the heart monitor. Its clip attached to her right index finger, steadily showing signs of life beside her. Oddly enough, she didn’t feel very alive.

Memories came rushing back to her. Sasuke, Kisame, Madara… the twins!

Akira tried to sit up, but something shot through her lower abdomen and she cried out in pain. A nearby nurse heard her and rushed over.

“Akira-san, please try not to move!” It was Megumi, one of Makoto’s sisters. Her twin salmon-colored pigtails bounced as she readjusted the blankets around Akira’s form. Akira felt something seep—likely she’d torn her stitches by trying to move so suddenly.

“You were just in surgery! Sakura-san will not be pleased if you tear your sutures!”

_Too late,_ Akira didn’t have the heart to say aloud. Instead, she said, “Where’s my family?”

Her voice was raspier than she would have liked and her throat ached. Likely, her mouth had been open for a time during the surgery. But none of that mattered—the twins… she had to see the twins, make sure they were okay…

Kagami and Sasuke came into sight, albeit more slowly than she would have liked. Taisou stood with them. Akira couldn’t help but feel somewhat self-conscious at her vulnerable state and the story behind it, but the relief she felt at seeing the twins overshadowed any shame she felt.

_Thank goodness…_ They were alright. Whatever plot that Tobi concocted hadn’t worked.

“Hey, you two…” Even with all the pain, Akira smiled. Taisou stepped forward to kiss her forehead, a gesture Akira appreciated, and then stepped back to allow Kagami and Sasuke the room needed to scurry to her side. Akira held out her hand—the one that wasn’t connected to the heart monitor or stuck with an IV—and the twins grabbed it.

“Kaa-chan, what happened?” Confusion was apparent in Kagami’s gray eyes. Sasuke nodded in agreement, but Akira had no answer for them.

“I’m so glad you’re alright…” she murmured. Her vision blurred once again. Maybe it was the blood loss. Maybe the drugs. Either way, she couldn’t focus. Beads of sweat formed at the top of her forehead, threatening to drip.

_You’re not going to make it through this…_ A small voice in the back of her head said. And, despite typically considering herself a positive person, Akira knew it was right. She wasn’t just going to sleep. She was dying.

“Akira?!” she heard Taisou’s voice. He sounded panicked, but she couldn’t bring herself to respond. Her family was here, her children were safe. That was all that mattered to her.

“Aishiteru…” The monitor flat lined.

-

Shizune bolted to Akira’s hospital room, two other nurses trailing close behind her.

Of all the people she’d expected to have a code blue on, Akira hadn’t been one of them.

By the time they arrived, Megumi was hurriedly checking Akira’s breath and vitals, ensuring that the monitor hadn’t malfunctioned.

“S-she was fine just a minute ago…” the girl stuttered.

“Move!” Shizune shoved the girl to the side, clearing the way as she summoned chakra to her palms.

_No, you can’t die!_ Someone had to tell them about Madara, about why he was here, how he was still alive… she had to have answers. She couldn’t let them die with Akira.

“Get them out of here,” Shizune briefly looked away to lock eyes with Taisou, and he knew she meant the twins. Tears welled up in Kagami’s eyes and Sasuke was already crying. They only looked more confused, but Taisou obeyed. With a twin in each arm, Akira’s uncle left the room.

Shizune didn’t keep track of how long she spent trying to revive Akira. She tried everything, every trick she knew. But it had been longer than six minutes. Even if by something miracle they managed something, even in a coma, Akira’s brain would be mush.

“Shizune,” the hokage’s former assistant froze when she heard a familiar voice, and then turned around to see her longtime friend.

_Tsunade…_ What was she doing here?

The former hokage seemed to know what Shizune was thinking and answered without having to be asked. “I heard about Akira. You and Sakura did what you could. She’s gone.”

Shizune wanted to argue. This meant Tsunade knew about Madara, too. And on that note, Shizune checked her watch.

“Time of death, four oh-one a.m.,” she managed. Megumi lingered in the room. By now Gina had joined her.

“I’ll inform her family,” Gina said gently. She and Megumi exited, leaving Shizune with Tsunade and Akira’s corpse. Shizune was used to death, she really was, but Madara—they hadn’t gotten to find out if Akira knew anything.

Megumi returned to the room with her sister Aya, whose expression fell when she saw Akira ashen and still. Oddly enough, a ghost of a smile adorned the former Hyuuga girl’s lips, but what for Shizune had no idea.

The sisters covered the Hyuuga girl’s body with and sheet and began wheeling her out of the room, leaving Shizune alone with Tsunade.

“How did this happen?”

Shizune shook her head. “You know as much as I do.”

There was a seat near the bed where Taisou had been sitting earlier, and Tsunade took it. With only one seat in this single person room, Shizune remained standing.

Tsunade crossed her legs, her elbow resting on one of them while she used her hand as a chin rest. The former hokage appeared deep in thought, her eyebrows creased.

“So Akatsuki’s back,” she finally said. “Or at least Madara is.”

Shizune managed a nod. “I have no idea what Akira was doing with him. Taisou said Akira hadn’t been feeling well that day, so he agreed to take the twins for the night. Also…” she trailed off. Tsunade gave her an expectant look.

“Go on.”

“Taisou said there was an attack on the Hyuuga compound that same night. Someone—or something, rather—tried to get in, but they stopped it. Whatever it was disappeared before anything else could happen.”

“You think the two were related?”

“Two intruders in one night. Definitely suspicious,” Shizune admitted.

“Hm.” Tsunade resumed her pensive look, her chin resting on her palm.

“Does Kakashi-sama know yet?” Shizune inquired, attempting to change the subject.

Tsunade nodded. “As soon as Madara became involved, he was informed.”

Shizune shook her head, still confused. “What was Akira doing with him?” She hesitated. “You don’t think…”

“No.” The former hokage’s tone was firm. “Akira would never betray us. If anything, Madara threatened her family.”

“But why Akira-san?” Shizune demanded, throwing her arms up. Something was missing. “Why not anyone else? How did she get injured? And if Madara was the one to do it, why try to _save_ her?”

Tsunade didn’t answer her question. “I will discuss the situation with Kakashi,” she said, finality in her tone, and Shizune knew this conversation was over. “Until then, Taisou and the twins could use some support.” Tsunade sighed. “Either way, we have a funeral to plan.”

-

Uchiha Obito twisted the Akatsuki ring on his gloved finger and executed a set of hand signs. A rumble resounded through the area as Akatsuki’s most recent hideout began to open.

_What a night._

As instructed, Zetsu waited for him in the main room. Kisame was in his room, probably sleeping. He’d receive the shark’s mission report in the morning. His main focus at the moment was Zetsu, and, much to the Uchiha’s chagrin, he didn’t sense any other presences save for Kisame throughout the base.

“Am I to assume your mission went to hell, as well?” The Uchiha didn’t bother hiding the annoyance in his tone as he approached the odd plant-like man. Although he didn’t look sheepish, Tobi could tell by the Aloe Vera’s expression that he was right.

“Didn’t even make it to the brats’ house. A bunch of Hyuugas caught us right outside the compound,” Black Zetsu said flatly. His white side added, “But we tried!”

Tobi rolled his eyes. He couldn’t remember a failure this bad since the invasion of Konoha, although admittedly, this was on a much smaller scale.

“I’m going to my room. I do not wish to be disturbed,” he said curtly, and, with that, the Uchiha turned on his heel and strode down the hallway toward the aforementioned location.

With only three members left, there were loads of empty rooms. There would have been plenty of space for Akira, the twins, but that wasn’t happening. He’d tried. He’d tried to grab any chance he had at using the Uchiha twins as weapons for vengeance against Konoha.

He passed Kisame on the way to his room. The shark had probably sensed his presence and emerged from his own space to see what the conclusion was. Sadly, he was about to be disappointed.

“Ne, Madara. How’d it go?” the shark greeted. Just as he’d suspected.

Kisame’s eyes drew to the blood on his uniform, Akira’s blood. Tobi pursed his lips, although Kisame couldn’t tell because of his mask. Still, the outcome was evident in the Uchiha tone as he said, “We lost.”

“Akira’s—”

“Dead. Even Konoha’s medical elite couldn’t save her. Zetsu, in turn, alerted the Hyuuga guards at the compound and failed to retrieve the twins. Tonight was a complete and utter _failure._ ”

Kisame said nothing after that. He just stopped, processing the information. Tobi continued down the hallway toward his room, eager for some privacy. Although tonight’s plan had failed, he would formulate another one, somehow using this complete and utter failure to his advantage. He’d done it before, and he’d do it again.


	50. Chapter 50

"-asuke! Sasuke!" The Uchiha blinked in confusion as his consciousness returned to him. His skull throbbed like he'd run head first into a brick wall.

_Madara!_  The name shot through his head like poison in his veins. The Uchiha groped for the blade at his side, but found nothing there. His sharingan blazed, but the only people who saw it were Izumo and Kotetsu. Izumo held Sasuke's blade, which still had blood on it, although it was dry by now.

_That blonde woman…_  The one in cahoots with Madara. Sasuke shook his head, which he quickly discovered to be a bad idea. He definitely had a concussion. This would not be fun to explain to Sakura.

“Dude, what happened? Did someone attack you?” Kotetsu inquired. Izumo offered the Uchiha a hand to stand and handed Sasuke back his sword, somehow not taking notice of the dried blood.

“Someone attacked me,” Sasuke said darkly. “I don’t remember who.”

He’d have to play the memory loss card. The world wasn’t ready to know Madara was back yet.

Izumo and Kotetsu exchanged looks. Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

“Must’ve been the same person who got Akira-san,” Izumo murmured.

“Akira?” Sasuke, slightly confused, echoed the name.

“One of our kunoichi was killed last night. Got brought in about an hour after midnight,” Izumo explained. “The story goes that Madara got her.”

Sasuke mentally thanked his usual stoicism, which kept him from smugly grinning. _So I did manage to kill her after all…_ But, he had to play clueless.

“Isn’t he dead?”

They both shrugged.

“Apparently not,” Kotetsu said. Sasuke was honestly surprised they didn’t look more worried.

“How’d they know it was Madara?” Sasuke needed to know. He needed to cover his tracks.

“Here’s where the story gets a little strange,” Izumo continued. Sasuke waited, listening. “Apparently he brought her into the hospital.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Didn’t even bother trying to disguise himself,” Kotetsu remarked. “She died shortly after surgery, though. Didn’t even have a chance to get anything out of her.”

“Hn.” Another wave of pain swept over the Uchiha as his head pounded. The light from the rising sun certainly wasn’t helping.

“Um, dude? You’ve got one hell of a bruise,” Kotetsu remarked, and Sasuke gingerly felt the side of his head with his fingertips. A sizable lump and the familiar texture of dried blood proved the dark-haired chuunin correct. “You may want to get that checked out.”

“Your wife works at the hospital, right?” Izumo spoke up.

Sasuke barely registered what the man said. A small glint, made visible from the morning sun, had caught his eye.

“Sasuke?” It wasn’t until Kotetsu called his name again that Sasuke came back to earth, so to speak. The Uchiha turned his gaze to the bandaged black-haired man. “You sure you’re alright?”

“I suppose it would be a good idea for me to visit Sakura,” Sasuke spoke suddenly. Izumo and Kotetsu looked surprised. Usually, it took far more convincing or at least someone physically dragging him before Sasuke agreed to medical attention.

“He must have really been hit hard,” Sasuke heard Kotetsu mutter, but the Uchiha paid him no heed. While duo distracted themselves with commentary, the Uchiha went to investigate the odd glint from earlier.

Sasuke descended to the ground on one knee, and his hand resting on the other one. That glint—it was a piece of jewelry. In one swift motion, the Uchiha retrieved what he discovered to be a red pendant attached to a broken silver chain near where he’d awoken.

A layer of grime dirtied the formerly polished stone. Using his thumb, Sasuke brushed away the layer to reveal the shiny red pendant bearing the painted black symbol for “fire.”

The woman he fought must have been wearing this, but that was not why it caught Sasuke’s eye. He’d seen this necklace before, but not since before the Uchiha massacre.

-

Sakura formerly known as Haruno pinched the crease in her exceptionally large forehead, fruitlessly attempting to banish a sleep deprivation headache.

It was past five in the morning. Her shift was nearly done for the night, but Sakura hardly felt satisfied.

She’d seen plenty of ninja she knew personally die both on the operating table and afterwards—each of them with family and friends—but something just didn’t sit right with her about Akira’s death.

She’d only just found out about the Madara incident after the Hyuuga girl’s apparently unsuccessful surgery. Tsunade herself had come in and forbid anyone from discussing what had happened, which only proved all the more confusing. Her former master had been remarkably closed, even with her, after the entire ordeal.

And then there were the twins…

Kaagami and Sasuke had sneaked back into their mother’s hospital room at just the right moment when their great uncle hadn’t been carefully watching. A nurse had found them both there, dead-eyed, holding hands and just staring at the empty bed. They looked like their world had just ended, which, in a sense, it had.

Even after Taisou found them again like that, he didn’t have the heart to insist they move. So, after obtaining permission from Sakura, Taisou had pulled in an extra chair from the hallway and sat there with them. As far as Sakura knew, they were still in there.

“Sakura.” The pink-haired medic whipped her head when she heard a most unexpected voice. Her night—or morning, rather—was only about to get stranger.

“Sasuke!” Her eyes lit up at the sight of him, but she frowned as he walked closer. An apparent bruise formed on the side of his temple.

“Sasuke, what happened?”

“Someone snuck up on me,” he said stoically. “Izumo and Kotetsu found me and insisted I come see you.”

“Well, they were right to.” Both of Sakura’s hands lit up with healing chakra and, knowing there was more than just a bruise there for her to heal, she placed them on either side of Sasuke’s head. Her husband had a level two concussion at least, in addition to a small cut on the side of his neck, which she had only just noticed.

They stood together in the hallway in silence until Sakura finished healing him. But, even after the bruise faded and the slight wrinkle in Sasuke’s forehead indicating pain disappeared, Sasuke said nothing.

So, Sakura broke the silence.

“Any idea who did this?” she inquired, trying to smile. Once again, Sasuke didn’t reply, but she wrote it off as a mix between exhaustion and injured pride. Or…

“There was an incident here at the hospital.” At her words, Sasuke’s eyebrows quirked. “I’m not really supposed to discuss it, but I’m hoping the commotion wasn’t related to the attack on you.”

Sasuke’s expression went back to being blank. She’d lost him.

“Izumo and Kotetsu filled me in on the details,” Sasuke stated.

Sakura frowned. “Idiots! They should know better than to disobey orders by blabbing, even to you!”

That, and Sakura was concerned how Sasuke would react to the news of Madara. Without a body, the man’s death had never been fully confirmed, but now they knew—he was alive. It worried her, what the knowledge would do to her husband. The last thing she needed right now was for him to return to the dark emotional condition of all those years before.

“Isao’s at my parents’ house,” Sakura began, trying to change the subject. “I’m sure he’d be happy to see you.”

“Perhaps later.” Sakura attempted not to let the disappointment show in her face at Sasuke’s answer. “I have to give Kakashi my report.”

“My shift is nearly over, so I guess I’ll meet you back home then?” Sakura inched closer to her husband, attempting a sensual tone, but it likely came out as more groggy with how exhausted they both were. She was midway through leaning in to kiss her husband goodbye when three sets of footsteps interrupted their moment.

Normally, Sakura paid little heed to those who passed by, especially on the rare occasions she got to see her husband at work, but it was Hyuuga Taisou and Akira’s twins.

She made brief eye contact with the twins’ uncle, who grasped a tiny palm in each hand. She attempted a “sorry for your loss” kind of smile, but she didn’t know how well it came across. Nonetheless, the man nodded in her direction and kept walking.

“What was that about?” Sasuke inquired. Ironically, it was the most she’d heard him say to her this whole conversation.

“If Izumo and Kotetsu really did tell you what happened, then you should know the kunoichi who died strangely was a colleague of mine. That’s her two children and their great uncle.” Sakura’s forehead wrinkled. Her eyes were sympathetic. “Poor things. They were there when Akira-san passed and everything.”

-

Sasuke didn’t know what to make of the situation. On one hand, his wife was upset, but, on the other, whatever this girl had been to Madara was gone.

Simply out of curiosity, Sasuke stole a second glance at the two.

They were older than Isao, but not by much. As he noticed this, Sasuke made the mistake of staring too long, and the girl looked back at him. Why, Sasuke had no idea, but she did, and they made eye contact. Her eyes were gray and pupil-less, like a Hyuuga’s, only gray. And something else, something familiar—loss. Brokenness. Complete and utter devastation.

“They kind of resemble Isao, don’t they?” Sakura said softly, and Sasuke had to admit she had a point. Their eye color was different, but other than that, the girl and her brother did bear a remarkable resemblance to their son.

_Must be coincidence,_ Sasuke decided. It had to be.

He knew the feeling of loss that he’d seen in the girl’s eyes. He knew it well.

It’s not that he’d known their mother. Sakura apparently had—Akira’s name had probably come up once or twice in conversation, but Sasuke hardly made a point to pay attention. It wasn’t that he felt guilty, because he didn’t—there were just so many questions that remained unanswered.

Sasuke turned back to Sakura. Thankfully, she hadn’t noticed his mutual glance with the child. The last thing he needed right now was her asking questions.

“So does that sound good to you?” she said, a note of finality in her tone. He’d missed the majority of whatever she just said.

“Yes, dear.” Thankfully, she was too tired to see through his blatant lie. She kissed him on the cheek, asked him to give Kakashi her best, and once again said that she’d see him again at home. Sasuke “Hn-ed” his way through the whole thing, and, before he knew it, she left the hallway to clock out.

For whatever reasoned, Sasuke found himself glancing back where he’d seen the dark-haired girl, despite the fact that she and her brother had been gone for longer than his wife.

Sasuke’s hand found its way back into his pocket and brushed against a familiar red charm on a broken chain.

Just who exactly had their mother been?

_-_

_“Hello, Sasuke.”_

_The eight-year-old’s face lit up at the sight of his brother gracing the entrance to Sasuke’s bedroom._

_Thirteen-year-old Uchiha Itachi stood with one arm leaned against the open doorway and the other behind his back, holding something, by the looks of it. Dark eyes twinkled affectionately toward him._

_“Nii-san!” Sasuke scrambled to his feet, abandoning his previous activity involving his favorite stuffed dinosaur and fake shuriken. He ran forward to embrace his brother, face buried in the elder’s stomach. He brother’s free hand affectionately ruffled his spikey hair._

_“It’s good to see you again!” Sasuke grinned._

_Itachi returned the smile, albeit without showing teeth. Hand still on his brother’s head and the other behind his back, Itachi knelt down to the boy’s level after Sasuke released him from the tackle hug._

_“I need your help with something,” Itachi began, and at this Sasuke’s smile only grew. He brought his hand out from behind his back to reveal a rectangular black velvet box._

_“You know Mom’s birthday is coming up, right?”_

_Sasuke nodded vigorously, knowing where this was going._

_“Well...” The elder Uchiha popped open the box to reveal a brilliant red charm encased in silver, shaped like an elongated teardrop and skillfully painted with the black kanji for “fire.”_

_It was beautiful. Perfect for an Uchiha._

_“She’s gonna love it!” Sasuke assured, his eyes admiring the sheen._

_“Good. I saw the design and had it handmade. A slight perk to having a jewelry maker as your mission client.” Itachi closed the velvet lid, likely recalling a memory Sasuke didn’t share, and replaced the box in one of the pockets of his baggy gray shorts. “Thanks for your help. Now I can give it to her knowing she’ll actually like it.”_

_“Any time, Nii-san!” Sasuke hugged his brother again, surprising him slightly, but even when Sasuke let go, Itachi didn’t fight it. Then Sasuke said, “Will you play with me now? It gets lonely up here all by myself!” Sasuke pouted in the adorable way that he knew Itachi couldn’t resist._

_“That,” Itachi said, resuming his full height, “I believe I can help you with.”_

 -

“Saito,” Kaede began. The Whirlpool shinobi, now a chuunin, stood in front of the woman’s desk, finding it odd that she had been the one to summon him and not Hayato, “There is something I must discuss with you.”

A wedding ring glinted on the weapon user’s left hand as he ran his fingers through messy dark chocolate brown hair, his expression perplexed. Kaede’s overall disposition clearly indicated that whatever this was about, it wasn’t good.

May as well be blunt then, shouldn’t she?

“I have just received word from Konoha that Akira is dead.”

To his credit, Saito didn’t yell. Or cry. Or anything really. He just kind of stood there.

“Are they bringing her body back here to be buried?” Saito managed.

Kaede shook her head, barely hloding it together herself.

“Tsunade has requested to allow Akira’s body to be buried in Konoha, which I have approved. Which brings me to why I have summoned you here, Saito. Despite having been Akira’s teacher for the majority of her time as a ninja, I cannot neglect my duties here to attend her funeral. Rather, I would like to elect you as a representative.”

“Me?” The surprise was evident in Saito’s tone as he pointed to himself. “Why me?”

“Because compared to everyone else here, I’m aware you cared for her most. You can even bring Misaki along if you would like. Should you both accept, you will be checking in with the current hokage, attending the funeral, and expressing our condolences. I assume your or Misaki’s parents won’t mind watching Nori for a few days?”

Saito rubbed the back of his neck, smiling softly at the thought of his wife and daughter.

“Yeah. My parents can take Nori for a few days. Even at two, she loves the shop…” Saito trailed off, suddenly feeling it inappropriate to smile.

Kaede remained stoic. The room went silent.

“Any…” Saito exhaled. “Any idea how it happened?”

“Unnatural causes. That is all I can share with you.”

“I will inform Misaki. We’ll leave within the hour.”

“Good. Give my best to Kakashi.” Kaede paused. Tears threatened her vision, but she choked them back with her next words. “And Eri and Kaname. I would imagine you will see them at the funeral.”

-

Sasuke couldn’t believe his wife had dragged him to this. He didn’t like funerals. His brother hadn’t even had a funeral, and he’d saved an entire nation from war. But here he was with his wife and son, dressed in black for someone he hadn’t known.

The funeral attendance was nothing compared to what Sasuke remembered from the third hokage’s passing, but there were a fair number of people here. Some of them Sasuke recognized from the hospital where Sakura worked. Others looked like they were from the academy. Most remarkably though, both Kakashi and Tsunade were both here. Kakashi had even brought his family, Anko and whatever the man had named his daughter. Sasuke couldn’t quite remember, but this was the first time he’d ever seen Anko look ready to cry.

It certainly didn’t help Sasuke’s enthusiasm that Sakura had decided to position their family right behind the two dark-haired children this woman had apparently birthed. Surprisingly though, they weren’t crying. A taller Hyuuga who looked to be in his fifties stood with them, holding the girl’s hand while her brother gripped her other one.

A brown-haired genin with a bandage over his nose spoke to the middle-aged Hyuuga, tears in his eyes. Something about how she had been “a great teacher” and that he would “miss her very much.” There were others who had already come by with similar messages, and, by the looks of it, more to come.

The funeral hadn’t started yet, so everyone continued to mingle, but Sasuke had enough. With a brief murmur to his wife that she didn’t seem to hear properly, Sasuke excused himself and began walking away from the small crowd of people.

-

It unnerved Saito a bit, to be in such an unfamiliar place. He’d known Uzugakure had improved its relations with the Land of Fire, especially after Akira’s transfer and the war that followed, but Saito had never been here before.

Misaki had immediately agreed to accompany him to Konoha when she heard the news. Honestly, he was relieved. The weapons master had been slightly concerned that his desire to attend Akira’s funeral would be seen as treasonous to their marriage, but Misaki hadn’t seen it that way at all.

His wife had certainly mellowed over the years. Appearance-wise, she maintained her chic pixie cut hairstyle and possessed her usual affinity for nice things and the color pink, but since becoming a mother, she wore significantly less make up and had honestly become a lot less catty. She still had her tendencies, but her moments of genuine kindness were far more apparent.

The two of them had already checked in with Kakashi after being permitted through the village gate. After that, they came straight to the funeral. They hadn’t seen Kaname or Eri yet. Come to think of it, Saito doubted either of them knew he and Misaki had married.

Saito wondered how old Eri’s son was now—Riku, he did believe the boy was named. Saito hadn’t seen him since he was a newborn.

“Saito?” The Whirlpool chuunin turned slightly at the sound of a familiar tone.

Misaki turned with him to see the petite female speaker with wavy dark hair and unmistakable chocolate brown eyes.

“Eri.” Saito smiled softly. He stepped forward to hug the girl and sure enough, Kaname stood right behind her along with another man he didn’t recognize. Still, Saito embraced her too and then stepped back to allow Misaki a chance.

“Hey,” Misaki smiled, and understandably, neither of them recognized her at first. Her hair was the same, but the expression she greeted them with was not.

“Misaki?” The surprise in Kaname tone only confirmed this as the copper-haired kunoichi stepped forward for a closer look. “ _Harumi_ Misaki?”

“Uzumori now.” Misaki held up her left hand for evidence, and Kaname gawked at the ring before capturing Saito’s wife in a hug.

“Congratulations,” Eri said softly, and when Kaname let go, she took her own turn to embrace Misaki, albeit much more gently. Saito noted the dark-haired woman’s left hand was remained blank, but Kaname’s wasn’t.

“How long have you been married?” Eri inquired once she and Misaki let go of each other.

“Almost three years.” Their hands laced together, Saito’s left and Misaki’s right. “How about you two? I would imagine Riku has gotten pretty big by now.”

Eri seemed pleased that he remembered her son’s name.

“Yes, he’s five now.”

“And this is?” Misaki motioned the man quietly standing beside Kaname, waiting to be introduced with a patient smile.

“This is my husband Makoto,” Kaname replied, and motioned to the silent man with an affectionate smile. He offered them a polite bow.

“Pleased to meet you.” His voice was kind and warming, a stark contrast to Kaname’s usual brash tone. But, when their eyes met, Saito could tell they cared about each other, and that was good enough for him.

“Riku is actually right over there with Akira’s uncle,” Eri informed. Saito followed her chocolate gaze to a middle aged man with long brown hair and eyes that matched Akira’s. He wore black robes and clutched a simple white fan in the one hand, while the other enclosed around the palm of a young girl, who couldn’t be more than five, with long dark hair.

A boy who looked eerily similar to her, probably related, stood next to her, along with a blonde boy who was undoubtedly Riku, and another blue-haired little girl. All of the looked upset, save for the blonde boy who seemed to be trying in vain to cheer up the others.

“I didn’t know Akira had family here,” Saito remarked.

“Neither did she.” Kaname smiled softly. “Akira ran into her uncle purely by chance.”

“The Hyuuga clan originated from here,” Eri added, to which Saito gave an “Ah-ha!” look of realization. That certainly explained why he saw so many people here with long dark hair and pupil-less lavender eyes.

“Who are the other children? Friends of Riku’s?” Misaki inquired.

Kaname and Eri exchanged glances, both of them looking hesitant. Saito raised an eyebrow.

“The blue-haired girl is mine. Her name is Saya.” Kaname spoke first. Saito could not help but notice her evident lack of resemblance to either Kaname or her husband, but he knew better than to comment. The four of them went silent before Eri answered his other question.

“The dark-haired boy and girl are twins. Akira was their mother.”

So many questions flew through Saito’s head at this revelation. Their ages, for one.

“Where’s the father?” he asked instead, but apparently that was the wrong question to ask, as well.

“He’s… not around.” At this, Kaname’s husband could feel the tension increasing, and understandably excused himself. Somehow, he just knew better. After he walked away, Saito continued.

“Is he just a deadbeat? Where is he?”

“He’s dead, Saito. Literally.” Leave it to Kaname to be painfully blunt.

“I’m sorry,” Saito murmured, realizing his mistake. Still, something wasn’t right. They didn’t _look_ like Akira. Their hair was dark and their face shapes were different, almost as if…

Judging by his wife’s expression, Misaki realized it, too.

“Uchiha Itachi.” Kaname and Eri grimaced at Misaki’s words, but they didn’t correct her. An anger Saito hadn’t felt in a long time began to fester, but he somehow kept his tone even as he spoke.

“What. The. Hell. Happened?” Misaki winced, likely because of how hard he was squeezing her hand.

“It’s a long story, Saito.” Eri glanced around. Her tone dropped even more softly. “Longer than we have. All you need to know is that Akira was all those little ones had, and now she’s gone.”

“How did _he_ die?”

Eri looked exasperated that he’d ignored her request, but nonetheless said, “A disease took him. Akira only tried to help him.”

“I guess that makes sense,” Misaki said as she, understandably, moved her show of affection from holding his hand to gripping his arm. Judging by the kids’ ages, Akira and Itachi must have met up again, but when and how, Saito had no idea. Misaki continued, “I’m sorry for your loss. We offer our condolences.”

Saito was remained livid, but he held his tongue. There was more to that story, there had to be, but no one had bothered to tell him. Eri and Kaname had known all this time, and he’d never once been informed. But Saito didn’t have time to be angry.

The funeral was starting and the casket was open—the full brunt of emotion didn’t hit him until then, when he saw the body of a girl he’d loved for years, even if it wasn’t current, lying there still, unmoving, and never to wake up again.

He felt the tears coming, but made no effort to stop them. This was pathetic—Akira’s kids weren’t even crying, but here he was, _sobbing_. He’d never been so grateful to have his wife there with him as she patted his shoulder and blinked through a few tears of her own.

And, with all his grief, Saito failed to notice the dark-haired figure who bore a striking resemblance to the Uchiha he’d known, pass them by without so much as a word.

-

Sasuke rolled his eyes, especially at whoever the fool was in front of him, crying like a child. Sakura would be mad at him for leaving right as the ceremony began, but he would find a way out of it. He always did.

He found a deserted place to chill away from the funeral, near a grove of trees beside another cluster of gravestones. It was a surprisingly sunny day for a funeral. Sasuke leaned against one of the trees, his face toward the sun. He need to come up with a descent excuse for not having been there, but he didn’t have time.

A chakra presence flickered to life on his radar, and he recognized it immediately. As if out of nowhere, the orange-masked man appeared beside him.

“Hello, Sasuke.”

_Madara…_

This time, Sasuke didn’t move to attack him, he just glared. He didn’t exactly have his sword on him, but he could think of something if need be.

“What do you want?”

The Akatsuki gave him a once over glance, and returned the snark with, “A bit ironic isn’t it? Going to the funeral of someone you killed.” He paused, noticing Sasuke gave him no reaction. Then he said, “I take it Sakura doesn’t know?”

He got his reaction.

“Just what the hell is your fascination with this woman? A little young for you, isn’t she, _Madara_?” Sasuke spat the man’s name, full of malice and hate. “Whatever she was to you, it’s gone now.”

Ssasuke didn’t know why, but Madara chuckled. That mad, sadistic laugh just condescending enough to indicate he thought he knew something that Sasuke didn’t.

“Sasuke, Sasuke,” his tone was patronizing, “when will you ever learn?”

“Learn what?” The Uchiha’s dark eyes narrowed. It was a wonder he hadn’t activated his sharingan yet. “What are you trying to prove here, Madara?”

“You still haven’t figured it out, have you?” The elder Uchiha exhaled and then laughed again. “You really don’t know?”

“Enlighten me.”

“I didn’t want Akira for herself. I wanted her for her _children._ ”

“Children?” Sasuke echoed. He thought back to the twins—dark hair, pale skin, and gray eyes—and their mother, who was blonde, a Hyuuga.

_Wait…_ The necklace…

A horrible thought crossed his mind, and judging by the wicked glint in Madara’s eye and the arrogance of his body language, he could tell.

“Finally figured it out?”

“No.” There was no way. It couldn’t be. Not _her._

“Those children are related to you by blood, Sasuke. _Itachi’s_ blood.”

“How?” Heat began to overtake the Uchiha’s body. His mind was a massive jumble of confusion.

Madara laughed again, but Sasuke hardly registered it. The elder Uchiha hunched over in bad humor, his finger pointed at Sasuke. “You not only killed your brother, but you destroyed the last possible link you had to him! I wish you could see your face, Sasuke!”

“How?” he asked again. This time, Madara answered.

“Your brother had a lot of health problems. Frankly, he wouldn’t have made it as far as he did without Akira-san.”

“But she—”

“Came to Konoha after he died in an attempt to stop the invasion. Frankly, I don’t blame her for not telling you who she was, even after all these years. You did murder the love of her life.”

“Why would Itachi choose her over me?” Over them—those twins. It all made sense now. Sakura’s comments about their resemblance to Isao, and that unnerving look in the girl’s eyes at hospital—they looked like Itachi. They looked so much like him.

_Why didn’t I see this before?_ As much as Sasuke hated to admit it, he hadn’t been looking. He’d isolated himself to the point of missing the painfully obvious. Regardless, Sasuke couldn’t see Itachi abandoning two—no, three—innocent lives just to save his. Unless…

“The standing assumption is that Itachi didn’t know. Probably thought he was doing Akira a favor by leaving to save you. But, for a Hyuuga, she was just as stubborn as any Uchiha. Would’ve fit right in with the rest of you.”

 Sasuke didn’t reply. He didn’t even know if he could trust Madara to answer honestly, but, at this rate, what else could he do?

“Does anybody else know?” Sasuke managed.

Madara brushed a gloved hand across his masked chin in a thinking pose, which would normally anger Sasuke, but this time it didn’t. Frankly, Sasuke didn’t know what to feel. He’d gone from being cocky and smug at being able to take something away from his worst enemy to realizing that he’d once again just been manipulated this whole time and wound up making a huge mistake.

“Well, Kakashi and the former hokage, for sure. Other than that…” Madara trailed off. “I would normally say to ask Akira-san’s teammates, but I would advise against that, considering you were the one to kill their friend. That dark-haired kunoichi especially can pack quite a punch—”

“You’re not making any sense!” Sasuke snapped, interrupting him. Teammates, kunoichi? What the hell was Madara even going on about? Kakashi… he had to ask Kakashi. That was all he’d gotten out of that.

“You’re lying! You always lie! Those twins could be yours for all I know, and you’re just trying to manipulate me. That’s what you do. That’s what you’ve always done!”

Despite Sasuke’s emotional explosion, Madara remained calm.

“For one, if the twins were mine, I would not have resorted to blackmailing Akira to meet with me, now would I?” Sasuke twitched, but said nothing, and Madara continued. “Run a DNA test if you must, Sasuke. Little Kagami and Sasuke are in fact your niece and nephew.”

Sasuke froze, replaying Madara’s last sentence in his head. His eyes were wide.

“What did you say?”

“Which part?”

“Their names—the twins’ names!”

“Oh.” Madara chuckled again. By now, Sasuke lost track of how many times it had been. “Little Kagami and _Sasuke_. That’s right, you heard me. You and the boy share not only blood, but also your name, and that part was not Itachi’s doing. That was all Akira. Probably trying to redeem the name in some way. That certainly sounds like her—”

“No,” Sasuke said quietly, interrupting him. “No, that can’t be true…” He said it over and over again to himself, like a mantra, as if the more times he said it, the more true it would become.

“Do what you must to confirm it, Sasuke. In the least, allow me to assure you that I hold you no ill in what you did. I only wish to inform you.”

“Why?”

“Because you need to know, just like you did with Itachi. Now…”

The elder Uchiha formed a hand sign and offered him a small wave, “I believe I have accomplished what I came here to do. If I were you, Sasuke, I would get back to the funeral. It’s nearly over, and we wouldn’t want Sakura to come looking for you, now would we?”

With a brief flash from one of his portals, the Akatsuki leader vanished. Sasuke was alone now.

Completely.

He made his way back to the funeral, and, sure enough, Madara was right that they were almost done. The last few people were lined up to place a white carnation on the Hyuuga girl’s coffin, where Akira lay, still and silent.

Not even consciously aware of it, Sasuke found himself trudging to the back of the line behind an elderly couple he didn’t recognize.

He could feel Sakura’s questioning gaze on him, and he looked up to see her quite understandably wearing a “Where the hell were you?!” expression as she balanced Isao on her hip.

Sasuke hadn’t bothered to notice the attendees until now. He’d seen the obvious people, like Kakashi and Tsunade, but he hadn’t noticed \z the others aside from himself and Sakura. For one, Naruto had shown up sometime during the gap he’d been gone, in addition to Hinata and their daughter. He hadn’t even been aware that Naruto was acquainted with Akira. Not just that. Iruka was here along with his wife and their son.

Kurenai was here with her son, too. Konohamaru and Shikamaru stood beside her, all of them looking solemn. There were teachers from the academy that _he_ remembered having, friends he’d never made, and people he’d never greeted, despite recognizing them on the street. There were so many faces that he both recognized and didn’t. More of them were crying than when he’d left, adults and children alike.

This was his fault. No one would have had to cry if he hadn’t been so hasty, actually listened—he remembered now. Akira hadn’t wanted to fight him. She’d only been left with no choice and then retaliated once he broke her necklace, one of the few mementoes either of them had left of his brother.

He could have stopped all of this, but he didn’t—he’d been too blinded by rage. The rage of an avenger.

There were only three people left in line now, including him. Amid the confusion, Sasuke found his gaze wandering back to the dark-haired five-year-olds who meant nothing to him as of five minutes ago. But everything had changed. He still had Sakura, Isao, and even Naruto, but now those children had nobody. He’d taken their father first and now their mother, too, both on a horrible misunderstanding that had required Madara—the Uchiha clan’s worst enemy—to explain to him.

Madara had said he was after the twins, their power. Whoever their mother had been, she was just a pawn in a much bigger game. A game those twins didn’t deserve to participate in.

Sasuke would have continued his tortured musings there, but it was his turn to pay his respects. Everything around him seemed to slow and fade away as he stepped forward to retrieve one of the few remaining white flowers.

_I’m sorry…_ Sasuke was fighting tears. He couldn’t cry here. He hadn’t cried since Itachi’s death, since he’d found out the truth. And now here he was, doing everything all over again.

_You didn’t deserve this._ He should have known better, but he didn’t, and now everyone else was paying for it. So he did the only thing he could do.

_I’ll protect them._ From anything. From Madara. From the village. From himself…

He didn’t deserve to go near them, but he couldn’t do nothing. Itachi had dedicated his entire life to protecting his brother from a distance. The least he could do in return was protect what little they had left.

_Sayonara._ And, with that, he dropped the flower.

-

Tobi watched the entire ordeal from afar, his chakra cloaked, and shook his head.

The knowledge of what Sasuke had just discovered was going to tear him apart. Sasuke didn’t talk to others about his problems. No, he would isolate himself, and Sasuke was so much weaker when he was alone.

Tobi doubted Sakura would find out any time soon, even after Sasuke had definite results. Sakura had been a friend of Akira’s and would not take the news well, especially considering her ignorance regarding Akira’s connection to Itachi, even with her son’s name. Talk about hiding in plain sight.

He didn’t have to worry about Akira’s friends, either. They had enough to worry about with hiding their own children from the prejudices of Konoha. Everyone was distracted. Just the way he wanted them.

It would take time, but he was patient. He would allow the village to grow careless, stupid—and then he would strike. The world would forget about him, and then he would painfully remind them, using the power of the Uchiha clan to fulfill his ultimate purpose. As many tries as it would take…

_To crush Konoha._


End file.
